


The Lies We Tell

by nickell47



Category: Whiskey Cavalier (TV)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-11
Updated: 2020-09-04
Packaged: 2021-03-03 05:47:58
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 19
Words: 118,181
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24119770
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nickell47/pseuds/nickell47
Summary: Six months. That’s how long Francesca Trowbridge was allowed to indulge in a dream she never knew she always wanted. It takes her one minute, 54 seconds and 12 words to blow it all up.
Relationships: Will Chase & Frankie Trowbridge, Will Chase/Frankie Trowbridge
Comments: 178
Kudos: 47





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> OK so I’ve had this idea in my head for months and I kept waiting for someone, anyone to jump inside my head pull it out and write it...but no one did so I guess I gotta write it myself. I should note that I am not a writer by any stretch of the imagination so please bare with me. Any and all mistakes are completely mine, don't go trying to claim them for yourself, I called dibs forever ago. 
> 
> I’ve only written this first chapter to kinda test this writing thing out so please let me know if you want more. 
> 
> Nickell

Six months. That’s how long Francesca Trowbridge was allowed to indulge in a dream she never knew she always wanted. Six months of falling asleep to the steady heartbeat of a good man. Of sleeping through the night without fear and no gun under her pillow. Six months of feeling loved in a way she’d not felt since she was 17. Six months of dinners and laughing and cuddles she would never admit to anyone but him that she loved more than shooting her gun. 193 days of feeling whole. 277,920 minutes of lightness. And only one minute, 54 seconds and 12 words to blow it all up.

**_“I don’t love you and I don’t want to do this anymore.”_ **

The combination of the courage that only comes from too many shots of tequila and the gut wrenching pain of one small yet devastating mistake is all it took for Frankie to lose everything good in and pure in her life and leave her with a hole where her heart used to be. The image of Will’s face streaked with tears seared into her memory so deep not even the strongest of alcohols has been able to burn it away.

Alcohol, body punishing workouts and the company of strangers have become her only refuge, her only salvation from the constant reminders of her lost happiness. Time has become her greatest enemy. She avoids calendars, clocks and holidays in an effort to ignore how much time has passed and how long she’s been living with a broken heart and a missing soul.

Seasons don’t lie though, and even all the pain in Frankie’s heart could not stop the earth from turning on its axis and warming her lonely corner of the world. So as the first signs of spring with it’s bird chirps and flowers pushing their way out of the earth once again found her, Frankie ran. Desperately needing to find that cold that matched her feelings and the ice that kept her heart frozen.

March in the northern seaside town of Húsavík, Iceland shows no signs of spring. No flowers blooming, no baby animals emerging from their homes to explore their new world, and most importantly no warmth to thaw those attempting to remain frozen inside. There is even less chance of finding that warmth at 2am in the back alley outside a dirty, run down local bar more suited to criminals, tortured souls, and those society would rather forget, than reputable upstanding citizens. _It’s perfect._

Frankie can feel the bitter wind hurling at her from the Arctic Ocean, blowing through the designer holes in her sweater and biting at her skin as her skirt rides up on her legs where the hands of tonight's attempt to forget pushes it higher. She doesn’t know his name, she didn’t ask, either did he. She only wants one thing from him, and he seems as eager to give it to her as she is to take it.

When she saw him walk into the bar 45 minutes earlier she knew he’d be the one. The one that could finally make her forget. He was short, slightly shorter than her 5’7”, but what he lacked in height was made up for in brawn with wide shoulders and defined muscles. She watched through a rum induced haze from her perch in a dark corner of the bar as he first greeted then punched an equally rough looking man before sitting down at the bar and barking viciously at the bartender to bring him five shots of vodka.

She evaluated him as he drank one shot after the next barely taking a breath between them. His dark coloured beard was unkempt and covered most of his face, his bald head was clearly shaved, and not recently as she could see where the regrowth had already begun, multiple piercings decorated his face and ears and the outline of a knife was clearly visible through his tight leather jacket with the arms cut off.

It was his tattoos however, that Frankie took most notice of and made her confident that he was the one. It seemed that every visible inch of his skin from his neck to his waist was covered in what Frankie could only describe as the most crude and vulgar imagery she had ever seen. From naked women spread eagle with demonic creatures executing torturous sexual acts upon them, to hate filled words fuelled by imagined Aryan supremacy, the images made Frankie’s skin crawl and rage fill her belly. He was everything Will Chase was not, and that made him perfect.

There was only one thing she had to be sure of before she could take him to the alley and use him in the transactional way that she once allowed herself to believe she’d escaped from. She swallowed the last of her drink, stood on slightly wobbly legs and took a deep breath. “Get your shit together, Francesca.” she whispers to herself as she makes her way to the bar and sits a few seats down from the stranger, in hopes of catching his attention and orders what she imagines will be her last shot before she makes her exit.

“Who the fuck are you then?” he turns towards her and demands in a voice as gritty as his fingernails. His native Icelandic sounding harsh and angry.

Frankie turns towards him slowly as she crosses her legs inside her tight and short skirt and looks him over one last time from his dirty steel toes boots right up to his icy blue eyes. Blue not green, perfect. That’s all she needed to see, she’s certain now.

Frankie picks up her last shot and swallows it without breaking eye contact then slowly licks her lips before lowering the glass once again.

“We can sit here and talk or you can take me outside and fuck me, your choice.” Frankie makes the offer without emotion. She has little emotion these days and what she does have she’s not going to waste on him. She holds his eyes for three seconds before turning away and making her way to the back door. She considered for a moment that he might not have understood the Russian she chose to use, but it seems the word "fuck" is universal and the sway of her hips and the look in her eye as she passed him must have got the point across because the man stood up and with a bragging yell to the rest of the bar followed her out into the cold.

With unforgiving hands the stranger grabbed Frankie as soon as he got outside, roughly pushing her back against the cold brick wall of the building and pressed himself as close to her as he could. She could feel every excited inch of his body and had to remind herself she asked for this. She wanted this type of brutality and anonymity, no she needed it. He reached up to kiss her and she turned her head away out of instinct. He grabbed her hair and jerked her face back to his and after a quick assessment yanked her head to the side and latched his mouth to the side of her neck sucking and biting like a leech looking for blood. Frankie couldn’t stop a small self loathing whine escape her lips as she felt his tongue stud pass over her skin and fisted her hands into the sides of his leather vest. The stranger seemed to take this as a sign of encouragement because he began rubbing himself even harder against Frankie while one hand palmed her breast and the other reached down to lift her skirt even more.

She can feel his hands rough, demanding and calloused on her skin touching her in ways that make her stomach burn and twist in both shame and regret and she has to fight to keep the bile from finding its way to her mouth. _Fight through it Frankie_ she demands of herself even as she grits her teeth against her instinct to flee. 

But he feels all wrong. His hands are not calloused from years of shooting a gun yet soft in all the right places. He’s not touching her in a way that makes her feel precious and adored. His rough grunts and vulgar curses are not the declarations of a man that makes her feel worshipped and worthy while he loves her. 

But all of that is secondary to the harshness of his grip which is now punishingly hard on her hips, hard enough to leave bruises as he grinds against her while trying to undo his belt. It’s the scratching of her bare back on the brick wall that finally releases Frankie from the numb status she was trying so hard to hold on to. 

_No No No_ she chastises herself even as she feels tears of frustration welling in her firmly shut eyes and leaking down her face. She can’t do this. She can’t let his man inside her and take those memories she’s tried so desperately to bury away, any more than she could the others before him. Not the Weapons Dealer in Moscow, the Con Artist in Montana, the Biker in Montreal, or any of the dozens of men she’d tried and ultimately failed with in Finland, Sweden, England, Ireland, Luxembourg or France. Why she thought a random stranger in Iceland would be any different she doesn’t know. 

Will Chase had ruined her. He broke her by loving her so hard.

“Stop.” Frankie says through gritted teeth as she pushes the stranger away, and rights her skirt.

She sees a flash of confusion on his face, but only for a second before his eyes darken into something dangerous that Frankie supposes most women would fear and he is once again pressing his body firmly against her, his hand reaching under her skirt rubbing between her legs almost painfully hard.

“You asked for this bitch, and you’re going to get it. Don’t you dare put up a fight you whore or I’ll make it hurt”

Frankie froze. He was not the first man to threaten her when she changed her mind after leading them on. She’s been the recipient of more than a few bruises, black eyes, and even one stab wound from the hard men she had tried desperately to let fuck her over the past few month. But something about this man and this moment made her feel like she should let it happen. Let him hurt her and defile her and leave her in the alley like trash. Maybe then the numbness and pain would stop and if she was really lucky she would slowly die here in this alley and what's left of her soul could slip away into the abyss.

It’s the sound of laughter from the opening door of the bar that jars Frankie back to the present and the stranger. _This is wrong. You don’t deserve to be let off the hook this easy. You don’t get to escape what you did and the pain you caused. Coward!_ It’s the anger in her own head that forces her arms to raise up and push the stranger off of her once again. He stumbles back a few feet, his legs catching in his newly lowered pants. It’s enough for Frankie to brace for the attack she knows is coming. As the frigid air hits her tear streaked face Frankie realizes two things. One the man is now holding his knife, and two she’s sick of this shit.

“You slut, you think you can lead me on then not put out? You’re going to regret walking into my bar.”

Frankie watches as the man drunkenly lunges for her wielding his knife like a sword. She easily sidesteps him and grabs the back of his vest using his own momentum to slam him into the dumpster to her left.

“You bitch!” He yells and lunges for her again, the rage on his face mirroring her feelings, though you would not know it from the serene and steady look on her face. “I’m going to kill you, you whore!” the stranger declared in a yell loud enough to draw attention from the less than sober patrons leaving the bar. Frankie, ready for the assault moved once again, sidestepping his attack and sent him head first into the wall knocking him out cold and lying on the ground with blood dripping from the split skin above his “I love my cunt of a mum” tattoo on the back of his head. Frankie stood back and straightened adrenaline now pumping alongside the alcohol in her veins.

“Gunnar?” Frankie hears a voice behind her. She turns ready to fight, but sees only a slip of a woman standing at the mouth of the alley. Frankie pauses and looks at the man on the ground then back to the woman before her.

“Gunnar didn’t like the word no.” Frankie declares in near perfect Icelandic.

The woman looks slowly between Frankie and the man, then nods slowly as if she knows this from experience and says “Perhaps now he has learned to like it.”

“Perhaps” repeats Frankie and moves away from the alley and onto the street, tucking a loose hair behind her ear as she goes.

“You’re bleeding” the woman says with concern as Frankie steps into the light.

Frankie hadn’t realized, the adrenaline masking the pain of the knife slicing her. Idiot she thinks, the alcohol must have slowed her movements, but she could feel it now, his knife was able to slice her left arm from wrist to elbow as he stumbled to the ground.

“It’s a small price to pay for such a valuable lesson to be taught.” Frankie whispers more to herself than the woman standing by.

Without waiting for a reply Frankie quickly makes her way down the street weaving in and out of alley’s and side streets on her way back to the safehouse. She’s not supposed to be there. No one is. It’s an old and forgotten off the grid CIA safehouse that’s really more of a fishing shack that hasn’t been used in years. But Frankie was desperate for a place to go and even if she had forfeited her job when she ran it didn’t mean she lost all the knowledge she had. Including where the most remote safehouses were located.

Walking through the door, Frankie went directly to the airplane sized washroom and removed her sweater and jacket. “Shit, Shit, Shit” Frankie repeated like a mantra as she stared at the damage done to her arm. It wasn’t deep but it was big and it would be infected before long if she didn’t clean it soon. Washing it the best she could with the small amount of soap she had, Frankie then wrapped it using an old dish towel and held it in place with hair ties. _“So smart, my very own Lady MacGyver”_ She can hear Will say in her head. _“Can I kiss it and make it better?”_

“Get out of my head Will.” Frankie mutters to herself as she shuts off the lights so she won’t have to look at the tears once again falling from her eyes, as the memories try to settle in now that the quiet surrounds her.

Frankie moves blindly through the shack to the cot pressed up against the freezing outside wall with a gun under the pillow, and wills the alcohol still coursing through her body to take her so deep into sleep that not even the nightmares will touch her. Slipping under the thin and mostly useless blankets Frankie closes her eyes, pulls her knees to her chest and slowly rubs her fingers over her right hip, trying to both soothe and warm her cold skin. But peaceful sleep is hard to find these days, Will broke her for that too. Will Chase broke her for the better in so many ways she couldn’t count them all if she tried. But in the end she broke him and she’ll never forgive herself for that, she can’t.

Sleep must have taken her because Frankie is jarred awake by the shrieking of her cell phone. The time on the phone says 5:12, about two hours of continuous sleep a new personal record Frankie silently congratulates herself. Another shrieking ring has Frankie focused once again. Only one person in the world has this number and he has only used it one other time in the past three months. He wouldn’t call unless something was wrong.

“Jai?” Frankie asks as she answers before the second ring is even complete.

“Francesca...” Frankie can hear the relief and fear in his voice, and is immediately on alert and preparing for the worst.

“Jai?” she says again when he doesn't continue. Every cell in her body is now tingling and she can feel her muscles tightening the longer she waits.

“Francesca. ” Jai who is usually level and calm practically sobs out. “Francesca, there’s been an accident. Will...” Jai’s voice hitches as he tries to get the words out. “Will’s hurt, it’s bad Frankie. He’s in surgery now but the doctor's aren’t sure he’ll make it.”

“Jai?” Frankie whispers barely audible, voice shaking with nerves and terror.

“Francesca, you need to come...If he doesn't...and you aren’t...I need...” Jai starts but can’t seem to get his mind around his words.

All the air rushes out of Frankie's lungs and she does the only thing she can, the only thing that makes sense and no sense at the same time. The one thing she’s promised herself every minute of every day for the past three months she wouldn’t do. She fights to pull air into her lungs and whispers passed the lump in her throat. “I’m coming”.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for your kind words for chapter one. Completely unexpected and much appreciated. This chapter kind of got away from me a little and a lot longer than I intended but I needed it to end were it does. Anyway I hope you enjoy it.
> 
> Same as before all mistakes grammar, spelling and otherwise are solely mine you can't have them no matter how much you beg!
> 
> Nickell

8pm. Will checks the clock above the bar one more time just to be sure. It’s 8pm exactly when Will notices Jai’s fingers freeze on his keyboard and reach for the phone in his pocket that has silently sent news. Will watches Jai closely as he nurses his beer across the room, his first and only one of the night, he needs a clear head just in case the news is bad. Will holds as still as possible as he watches Jai’s face first tense then relax as if he’d been holding his breath all day and could finally let go. He continues his silent assessment as Jai stealthy darts his eyes from the expensive and pretentious watch he favours to the map on the far wall before sending his one button reply and tucking his phone away once again. Will slowly releases the breath he had been unknowingly holding. She’s ok. She’s ok for one more night. 

It took Will an embarrassingly long amount of time to figure it out, and even then if it hadn’t been for Standish’s nosiness he might still be in the dark. Will was certain that Jai was in contact with Frankie, but of course Jai would never admit to it. Loyal to a fault Jai is. It wasn’t until Will overheard a conversation between Standish and Ray about Jai having a secret romance that Will has his confirmation. 

*******************

It was mid February and Will was hiding in the back room of the bar, throwing darts without seeing where they landed. Alone of course, he’s not much for company these days, only staying at the bar because it hurts less than being at home, though barely. Jai and Susan are in the secret bathroom lair and Will suspects she’s trying to convince Jai into having what she calls a “friendly chat” which is code for unofficial therapy. They all know it, they all hate it, but they do it anyway because it makes Susan happy and it’s easier to give into her than tell her no. Not Will though. Will doesn't talk to anyone beyond the necessary anymore. Not even Susan. 

“Did you know Jai has a secret girlfriend?” Will hears the young hacker ask with the enthusiasm of a puppy with a bone. 

“What? Wait, no he doesn’t he would have told me. We’re best buddies now.” Ray makes the declaration with such confidence that Will almost felt sorry about what he knew was coming next. 

“Excuse you!” The now offended Standish declares. “If anyone is Jai’s best buddy it’s me. You don’t even have a secret handshake.”

“What secret? You guys practice it all the time and you keep asking for ideas to improve it. At this point all of New York knows your silly little handshake.” Ray scoffs as he takes a sip of his beer. 

“Silly!” Standish gasps so dramatically that he begins coughing and almost falls out of his chair from sucking in so much air.

Will abandons his darts and enters the room slowly and takes note of Standish’s predicament. “You ok there buddy?”

Standish looks up at him standing next to the table with now watery eyes and a slight smile, finding enough breath to say “Yeah, just my body rebelling to having to work with the delusional.”

Will slowly nods and tries his best to look sympathetic. 

“Standish thinks Jai has a girlfriend.” Ray blurts out making Standish drop eye contact with Will. 

“Don’t think, know. I have proof.” 

“What proof?” Ray demands once again. 

“Ok check it. So I was minding my own business, just chilling at my workstation last week when Jai’s phone buzzed and of course being the kind soul that I am, I picked it up to hand to him and I caught a peek at the message when I did. Innocently of course.” Standish defends.

“I never suspected otherwise.” Will says as he nods sombrely. 

Standish flashes a quick grin before continuing. “Well Mr. Cranky Pants gets all secretive, and won’t let me see his response. But don’t you worry your boy is on the case. Three more times I’ve managed to catch the messages before he stopped taking his phone out of his pocket when a master spy like me is around. Yep, Jai has a secret girlfriend for sure.”

“That’s it? That’s your proof? He got some texts.” Ray questions, staring at Standish in disbelief.

“Oh no it’s not the texts, it was the content that proves it. Same message everyday.” 

“Well?” Ray leans in waiting for the naughty details he’s sure are coming his way. 

“Eggplants.” Standish says with a shit eating grin on his face. 

“Eggplants.” Ray repeats like a toddler learning a new word. 

“Eggplants. Well one eggplant to be specific. Every single day. He gets one eggplant and sends back some weird ass white circle thing I’ve never got close enough to see clearly.”

Will feels the air rush from his lungs and the edges of his vision blur. “It’s an egg.” He whispers the statement to himself more than the others, who’s argument over what eggplants and white circles prove or disprove drowns out his revelation. Clearing his throat and finding his voice, Will manages to get out the words “Do you know where the messages are coming from?”

Standish taking no notice of Will’s emotional state continues to ramble. “Well in the interests of protecting my besties virtue I did a little digging. Turns out they’re coming from everywhere and nowhere. I think my boy found himself a fellow hacker, and one that is crafty enough to use an untraceable phone to send her little eggplants of love.”

It’s her. He knows it’s her. There’s no doubt in his mind. Jai is communicating with Frankie. It’s the only confirmation he needs to convince himself that he needs to start watching Jai closer and immediately if he has any hope of finding her and bringing her home. 

Standish and Ray continue to argue over the “proof” with Ray demanding to know if it wouldn't make more sense for it to be a man sending Jai an Eggplant and not a woman. Standish latches on to this and begins a loud Jai-defending tirade about it being 2020 and Ray needing to get “woke” if Jai wants to trade eggplants and white circles with a man there’s nothing wrong with that. 

Without a word Will walks away and climbs the stairs to his office to think clearly and begin planning how to go about out spying one of the best spies he knows. 

********************

It took him two weeks to figure out the system. Two weeks of watching Jai closely. Watching him tensely react to the buzzing in his pocket then the relief in his eyes when he sees the message. Will knew there must be a schedule they’re following and tries to track it as best he can. It seems to happen around dinner time every night. But then suddenly a change and it was at 3pm, then 7pm, then noon before changing once again. But still he was sure, there’s no way they would leave it so random, they’re too well trained for that. 

The clue he needed to figure it out came by pure luck which put him at the right angle to notice the small jerking of Jai’s eyes towards the world map covering the extensive wall opposite the bar when the message came through. Will watched Jai as he stealthy studied it, shifting his eyes between the map and his watch several times before taping out his one key reply and with a last quick look at the map gathered his things and went back to his workspace, leaving a thoughtful Will behind. 

It was the abruptness of his departure that shook Will back to attention and made him pause and look at the map himself. What could Jai possibly be looking at? As his eyes scanned the map with all it’s lines and boundaries drawn out, the memory hit him so hard he had to remind himself to breathe.

***************

_ They were lying in bed, more of a one man cot really, in the backroom of a safe house in some South American country with no working fans and paper thin walls. It was swelteringly hot, and so humid it felt like the air was pressing in on them from every angle. It didn’t stop them however, from holding each other close and wrapping themselves up in a tight knot of limbs and hearts so entwined that left it almost impossible to tell where one ended and the other began. It was a bad day and they both needed the contact knowing tomorrow could be worse. _

_ “You’d think it would be cooler at night.” Will comments as he presses his lips to Frankie hair and rubs his hand down her naked sweat slicked back.  _

_ “Welcome to August in the Amazon.” Frankie teases back her breath ghosting over Will chest.  _

_ Will lets a small chuckle escape before pressing another kiss to her head. “Go to sleep, we have a big day tomorrow and I need you rested and not cranky.” _

_ “I’m never cranky.” Frankie huffs out, but exhaustion steals her usual sass.  _

_ “OK.” Will agrees with humour in his voice. He’s not going to argue, he really does need her to sleep. _

_ “Just a few more minutes, I need to make it to midnight.” Frankie whispers, clearly fighting to stay awake.  _

_ “What’s so special about midnight?”  _

_ Frankie is quiet for a minute and Will thinks she actually might have fallen asleep. But then he hears her soft whisper. “My dad told me once that midnight is its purest moment of the day. The one moment that yesterday’s mistakes don't matter anymore and everything is clean and new and the possibilities are endless. Just for that one moment nothing matters and everything is possible. The gift of a new day Francesca, it doesn’t get any sweeter than that. I don’t know maybe it’s stupid, but I still love the idea of there being one moment in the day that we all have a clean slate and a chance to make our wrongs right.” _

_ Will slowly reaches down and grabs Frankies hand bringing it to his mouth to kiss her fingers. “Your dad sounds pretty wise, maybe he was on to something.” _

_ “Yeah, maybe.” Frankie whispers in a way that tells Will she’s just about asleep. _

_ Will flutters open his eyes just in time to see the red numbers on the cheap alarm clock slip from 11:59 to midnight and whispers “You can sleep now, gorgeous. It’s a brand new day.” _

***************

Midnight. She’s sending messages at midnight from wherever she is. And today that message came at exactly 8pm.

Will looks at the map and before he can stop himself he says “Iceland.” It’s not in a loud voice or at a volume that should carry very far at all. But in the quiet of the bar where only he and Jai remain it sounds louder than a train in Grand Central. 

Jai’s fingers freeze on his keyboard and his eyes slowly rise to meet Will’s. “Excuse me?”

Will takes a breath, he’s waited long enough for this confrontation and quite frankly he’s done waiting. “She’s in Iceland isn’t she?” When Jai says nothing he continues. “I suppose it could be somewhere on the West Coast of Africa, but she doesn't like to be noticed and she’d be noticed more readily there, so my money is on Iceland. The only other place that it’s midnight right now.” 

Jai keeps a steady gaze on Will giving nothing away, neither confirming or denying Will’s theory. 

Will stands up slips his hands in his pockets and sighs “I know I’m right Jai, I know she texts you that stupid eggplant emoji everyday and you send back that egg. She told me once how she used to threaten to force feed you only eggplant if you ever made her take care of you after getting hurt for a stupid reason, and how you made the same threat with eggs. She told me some days that threat was the only thing that kept her from doing something stupid. She hates eggs that much. I know she sends it everyday at midnight without fail. That’s how you track her. That’s how she lets you track her.”

Jai holds Will’s gaze and the two men stare at each other both refusing to back down. Will can feel the tension in the air. It’s been a long time building. This is not the first time he’s confronted Jai about knowing more than he’s telling (not that he’s told anything at all) but Will is praying this time he might actually learn something. He knows he’s right when Jai cocks his head slightly to the left and one side of his mouth pulls tightly upwards. “It’s not an eggplant, it's an Aubergine, and quite possibly the worst food ever. Feeding it to me is the second worst thing she ever threatened to do to me”

Will freezes. Confirmation at last. 

Jai heaves out a sigh so deep it’s like he’s been holding onto it since she left. “It took you so fucking long to figure it out William Chase, I was beginning to think I was going to have to report you to the FBI as an incompetent agent.”

Will stares at Jai in shock. This is not what he was expecting. 

“I swear it was like spoon feeding a toddler.” Jai continues as he looks at Will with all the disappointment of a TV dad. 

“You wanted me to know?”

“If I didn’t want you to know, you wouldn’t know.” Jai states with a smug tone of arrogance. 

Will stares at him in surprise. “You’re as cocky as she is.” 

“Who do you think taught her?” Jai says with a smirk before his face returns once again to the stoic look it’s held for the last three months. “I’m a spy Will. Do you really think I would sit in view of you every night just to be sure you would see me get the texts? Or that I would let Standish see my screen so many times? Or that I would look at the map every time I get a message?” Will just stares at him trying to understand why. 

“I would never betray her Will. I would never tell you what she didn’t want told. But that doesn’t mean I want to see you in pain. By making sure you see me, that you can watch me get the message that she’s ok, I can do both.” Jai finishes on a soft note, looking both guilty and relieved at the same time. 

“Thank you.” Will chokes out when he can find his voice once again. 

Clearing his throat Will pushes forward, needing answers. “Do you know why she’s in Iceland?”

“No”

“Is she safe?”

“The aubergine would indicate so.”

“Why did she leave?”

“I don’t know.”

“Would you tell me if you did?”

“No. But I would do everything in my power to make sure she did.” 

Will looks at Jai like he doesn’t believe him. He’s not sure if it’s the what he’s certain is a desperate look on his face or the way his hands are shaking or something completely unrelated that makes Jai’s face suddenly soften and eyes darken. “She left me too Will. She left me behind and she’s never done that before. Whatever happened, whatever made her run...she’s not sharing, not even with me.”

Jai stops talking, the silence in the bar is almost deafening. But Will still has questions he needs to know the answers to, so he asks already knowing he won’t get answers but he has to try. “Have you spoken to her?” He begins again softly.

“Just once other than the check ins. I called her last month.” Jai surprises Will by answering. 

“You spoke to her?”

“Just once. She wouldn’t let me have the number if she didn’t trust me not to use it. February 15th was the one exception I knew she would allow.”

“The anniversary of her parents death.” Will remembers. “Did she say anything?”

“No, she cried. I listened to her cry for over an hour. She didn’t say a word except a muttered goodbye when her phone battery started to beep.”

“Frankie doesn’t cry.”

“She does on February 15th. I think she cries on other days now too.” Jai says sadly.

Will feels sadness drape over him like a wet blanket. He knows how he’s been feeling. The sadness that seems to eat him from the inside. The endless pain that never goes away, following him around ready to pounce whenever something triggers a memory of her. The complete loss of hope that makes it almost impossible to wake up and care some days. He’s held onto the hope that it was anger that tore her way from him when she disappeared and that she’s hiding herself away to punish him, and if he just could figure it out he could fix it. The idea that she feels just a fraction of the sadness he’s feeling is almost too much for him to bear. 

“If you talk to her again will you tell her something for me?”

“I won’t call her if that’s what you’re asking. I won’t betray her like that, please don’t ask me too.” 

Will signs in frustration he knows Jai won’t interfere, and nothing will make him change his mind. Still Will needs to try and Jai is his only hope. “Please just tell her...tell her that if she found the ring and it scared her or made her angry...just tell her I promise never to ask. I promise never to mention it again. I’ll give it away or sell it and take her on holiday with the money, or hell I throw it in the East River if she wants. I don’t need her to marry me, I just need her. Please just ask her to come home.” Will pleads out the last part with tears in his eyes and once again the two men stare at each other in silence. 

“If she asks I’ll tell her, but that’s the most I can promise. I’m sorry.” Jai quietly says and the look on his face tells Will that’s the best he’s going to get. Will slowly nods and goes back to sit on his barstool and picks up his beer, as Jai retreats to the back room clearly done talking. 

**************** 

Will is oblivious to how much time has passed while he sits at the bar staring into his long warmed beer replaying the last night he had with Frankie and his conversation with Jai when he appears once again. It’s been over two hours and Jai is ready to go with his perfectly posh coat and hat firmly in place. 

“Will it’s time to go home, you need to get some rest.”

“Yeah” Will sighs, knowing that going home doesn't mean rest any more than sitting at the bar does, but wanting to appease Jai after the kindness he showed tonight. So he grabs his coat and slips it on as he follows Jai out into the cold night. Locking the door behind them the two make their way north toward the neighbourhood the both live in. It's cold and it’s a couple of miles away but neither man seems interested in finding a cab to take them home, so they walk in silence. 

“Can I give you some advice?” Jai says after about 10 minutes. Not waiting for Will to respond he continues. “You need to start taking care of yourself so Francesca has something to come home to.” Will looks at Jai in question. “You look like shit Will. You’ve lost too much weight, you don’t eat, you’re not sleeping, you haven’t been to the gym or shooting range more than the minimum requirements in weeks, you’re far too quiet and don’t even get me started on your hair and that thing growing on your face.”

Reaching up to touch his face Will scratches at the growth that’s thickened over the past few months. “What’s wrong with it, Frankie said she liked when I have a little stubble”

“I have stubble, what you have rivals BigFoot my friend and I can guarantee Francesca would not approve.” Jai claps back with a seriousness that makes Will question his slipping grooming practices before continuing in a soft voice. “Look, I don’t know what happened to make her leave but, I’ve known Francesca long enough to know that if she didn’t love you she wouldn’t have left at all. She left because she’s scared and she can’t handle that she hurt you. She’s staying away because she can’t bear to see you in pain and looking lost. You need to be the strong, confident, clean cut, goody two shoes man she loves so she can come back and love you. You need to get your shit together so that when she is brave enough to poke her head up from the rabbit hole she’s stumbled into you’re ready and able to pull her out.”

The truth of Jai’s words sting. Will knows he’s not been great at hiding his depression, but he didn’t realize it was that obvious. Maybe Jai is right, and he needs to start being the man Frankie used to love, and not the shadow of a man she left behind. They walk a few more minutes in silence before Will stops walking at the corner waiting for the crossing light to turn to walk. Jai continues walking into the street only slowing when he notices Will is no longer beside him. Turning Jai looks at him as if to ask what he’s doing. 

“Sign says do not walk.” Will explains.

“There’s no cars.” Jai retorts.

“Sure but Eagle Scouts always obey the rules.” The smallest of smiles appearing on Will’s face. It’s sad and it doesn’t reach his eyes but he’s trying. 

Jai looks baffled for a moment before smirking and shaking his head slightly and saying. “Good boy.” Turning back around Jai yells out continuing across the road “Good thing I was never an Eagle Scout it’s cold out here and I want to get home.”

Will lets out a small laugh, the sensation feeling odd in his chest from so many months of absence. He feels something wet fall on his cheek as he watches Jai crossing the road and looks up to see snowflakes falling softly from the sky, big puffy Hallmark style flakes that remind him of the time he and Frankie tried to build miniature snowmen on her balcony. “I love you Frankie.” He whispers to the snow. “I’ll be here when you’re ready.”

It’s the sound of blaring music that pulls Will’s attention from his whispered vow. A SUV going much too fast on the snow slicked city streets, it’s headlights veering from left to right as the car weaves its way across the mostly empty street. Will watches as the lights land directly on Jai’s still retreating frame and Will starts running, yelling at Jai to move. 

  
  
*******  
  
  


Jai feels the hands on his back pushing him away a fraction of a second before he hears the unmistakable sound of a body being struck by a car. Rolling on the ground where he fell he can just make out a set of tail lights speeding away through the blood dripping into his eyes from what feels like a big gash on his head. But it's the body laying in the street that is the only thing that matters now. Jai painfully crawls towards Will’s body about 20 feet away fearing what he’ll find. Will is lying on his back blood pooling under his head and one arm is twisted at a vomit inducing angle. His eyes are open though and his chest is moving, too fast and laboured but moving.

“Will, Will look at me.” Jai begs as he reaches his side. “Will look at me.”

Jai can see Will trying to focus his eyes but failing. “Jai” he gargles out as blood puddles then drips out of the side of his mouth” “Jai I need...Frankie...I need...tell…love...find her...find her...need…”

“Stop talking Will just breathe, hold on help is coming. Can you hear the sirens coming? Help is coming.” Jai begs through his tears. 

“find...need...love….Frankie….Frankie…” Will chokes out through the blood coming faster now. 

“I’ll find her. Will I swear. I’ll drag her home myself if I have to...I’ll find her.” Jai vows.

“Frankie.” It’s the last word Will says before the darkness takes him. 


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this one got away from me too. Full disclosure this is only half of what the original chapter was meant to be but it was getting out of control so I divide it. Good news though is that this means the next chapter is almost done. 
> 
> Thank you so much to those leaving comments and kudos it really makes me want to write more for this insane journey. 
> 
> Anyway I hope you like this chapter. As always back off the errors they're mine and I don't share well. 
> 
> Nickell

_This is taking too long._ Frankie thinks as she sits in her window seat in the last row of a commercial airliner bound for New York. It had taken her less than five minutes to clear out of the safe house and steal a truck to get her to the small airfield nearby. From there she was able to buy the services of a young and naive pilot who was more interested in looking at her breasts than asking why she needed to leave for Reykjavik when it was still dark. He flew her the 40 minutes in his small and noisy two seater plane for only $50 and the promise she’d give him a hand job upon arrival. She didn’t, though she did leave him with a black eye and the lesson to always get payment up front which, in her opinion was far more valuable than a two minute romp in a dark corner of the airport. 

Having turned over her badge and gun to the CIA, Frankie forfeited all the perks that went along with them. No more private planes she didn’t pay for herself, no more official means of getting what she wanted when she wanted it, no more strings to pull with local governments, and most notably no more traveling legally with her usual guns and knives on her person. So here she sits; crammed into a too small seat, on a too full plane, too many hours after she should already be home, without the comfort of her gun on her hip and blade in her boot. 

_This is taking too long._ Frankie thinks again. Repeating it like a mantra in her head over and over as she shifts in her seat trying to find relief for the pain that is shooting up and down her injured and now throbbing arm. Still wrapped in a dish towel secured with hair ties, the pain is like fire in her veins running up and down her arm, bringing with it a most unwelcome headache. The aspirin she’d pulled from her only piece of luggage; a worn and torn old backpack, isn’t helping much and she’s trying her best to ignore it. _Too long._

The older woman in the seat next to Frankie is talking endlessly to her husband seated on the aisle, about everything she wants to do once they get to New York. Their first holiday in forever, if she’s to be believed and she’s just so excited she could burst. 

Frankie is trying her best to ignore her, and it appears so is her husband as he once again rolls his eyes and sends Frankie a look as if to say “sorry you got stuck beside us.” Frankie offers the smallest of smiles before leaning her head against the wall of the plane and closing her eyes with the hope that the vibrations of the cool plastic and the white noise of the engine will drown the woman out. 

It’s almost working when she hears the woman say to her long suffering husband “There’s a restaurant I want to try in the East Village. Apparently it has those pastry things you like. You know the cinnamon ones we had in Prague.” 

_Prague._ Frankie sucks in a breath as if she’s been punched in the stomach. That one small word is enough to pull up a memory that Frankie has been trying to keep buried for months.

*************

_Frankie holds eye contact with Will as he gets closer, then closer still, and then ever so much nearer to her with clear intent in his eyes, on that unusually chilly May day in Prague. Still feeling the high of saving a small corner of the world from the Trust and the demise of Ollerman the night before, Frankie is feeling too good and too relaxed to stop him._

_He’s so close she can feel his breath on her lips and the softest of grips of his right hand on her waist. She allows her eyes to flutter closed and sighs out a soft breath of her own to mingle with his. Confusion rises a fraction of a second later when she feels his lips not on hers, but ghosting over her cheek and brushing against her ear as he whispers “I’m not going to kiss you today Francesca.”_

_Frankie tries to draw back and pull away feeling instantly foolish and unexplainably hurt by his declaration, already berating herself for stupidly believing he would actually kiss her. How could she let herself read his intentions so wrong. But his grip tightens and he continues to whisper to her in a voice that makes her knees feel like they’ve turned to jello, his lips brushing against her face with each word._

_“I’m not going to kiss you because that would be easy. It would be easy for me to kiss you and take you back to the hotel and make love to you.” He pauses to breathe her in. “God, I want to make love to you.” He says pressing his lips just a little harder against her cheek then her temple._

_Frankie is frozen in place. She’s not even sure she’s breathing at this point and she’s certain the only thing holding her upright is his hand on her hip and her hands that have somehow without her consent moved to grip the lapels of his jacket as if her life depended on it._

_“No, I’m not going to do that.” Will continues._

_“You’re not?" Frankie blurts out before she can stop herself, still feeling breathless and inexplicably disappointed at this turn of events._

_“No, Francesca.” He whispers like a prayer before charging forward with a verbal assault that’s causing her heart to beat wildly. “Today, I’m going to start to woo you.”_

_Frankie snorts out a small whispered laugh. It’s such a Will Chase thing to say and exactly what she needed to hear to get some of her focus back._

_“Woo me, Will? Seriously?" Frankie sasses with another disbelieving laugh._

_“Yes woo you. I’m going to woo you so hard Frankie. You’ll be begging me to kiss you before long. You won’t be able to resist.” Will makes the statement with so much confidence it’s bordering on cockiness. God she loves when he acts cocky. But that doesn’t mean she’s going to let him get away with it. Frankie can’t resist putting up a fight. It’s in her nature after all._

_Pulling back but staying in the circle of Will’s arms Frankie assesses him for a moment before offering up her response. “I could just kiss you now.”_

_Will looks at her thoughtfully for a moment then gives her a smirk that makes her heart flutter in her chest. “You could. But, you won’t.”_

_“I won’t?”_

_“Nope.” Will responds with a hard pop of the p and looking far to pleased with himself for her liking._

_“And why is that?”_

_Will smiles and leans forward again dropping his voice to a low murmur and whispers in her ear “I think you’re far too curious about the wooing. I think you want it. I think you’re secretly hoping for it. It’s going to be so good Frankie.” He sighs against her, making her shiver and sends her mind to places that would make the nuns passing them by rush to confession. “Let me woo you Frankie…” He finishes with a series of barley there kisses to the side of her neck just below her ear._

_Frankie takes a deep breath, slowly breathing in his scent and desperately trying to find enough focus to respond. God she wants him. She wants him so bad it hurts to think about not having him today, now, right this second._

_But she knows if she tells him that that she doesn’t want to wait that she wants him now, he’ll agree and follow her back to the hotel and they’ll fuck like rabbits for a few hours, maybe even into tomorrow. But that would be it. Cheap and dirty. Everything Will’s not and she thinks maybe she’s done being too._

_Maybe she’s wrong and they’d be able to go right back to being partners after they get it out of their system. Or maybe they could continue and become a kind of partner’s with benefits and everything would be fine. But she doesn't think so. They’ve got to do this his way, or not at all and the latter is not an option anymore._

_With a small sigh of her own Frankie lifts her arms to loop around Will’s neck and pulls him closer, her hands tangling in his hair. She presses her lips to his neck, gives him a quick nip, she then soothes with another kiss causing a quick intake of air and hum of pleasure to escape Will. She can feel a shutter run through him as she slowly kisses her way to the shell of his ear and whispers the bravest words she’s sure she’s ever spoken. “Bring it on, Whiskey.”_

*****************

The impact of the plane’s wheels touching down snaps Frankie from her memory and has her reaching for her phone well before it’s permitted. With a quick text to Jai she notes the time and does the math in her head. It’s almost 1pm here. Almost 12 hours since she got the call, that the love of her life was fighting for his after being hit by a car. 12 hours is how long it took her to get here. _Too long._

Jai as always is quick to reply and abrupt in his answering text. “Out of surgery. In ICU. Family only. Susan with him. Parents arriving soon. My place. Now.”

“Hospital.” She counters. She needs to see Will. She needs to see for herself that his heart is still beating. That his lungs are still moving air. 

“No.” 

“Fuck.” Frankie mutters to herself not caring that the chatty woman beside her takes offence to her language. “40 minutes.” Frankie sends back knowing she’s not going to get more out of him, or get him to change his mind so it’s pointless to even try. He’s as stubborn as she is. She usually likes that. Today she doesn’t. 

************************

47 minutes later Frankie is knocking on the door of Jai’s top story apartment and silently cursing him for still living in the six floor walk up. 

The door opens abruptly and Frankie finds herself staring into the exhausted eyes of her last remaining friend in the world. They stand in silence both slowly assessing the other. He’s got a bandage on his head, bruises marking his face and what looks like a very painful road rash running up and down his uncovered left arm. 

“You’re late.” He accuses after a moment. 

“Traffic.” Frankie defends. Before silence falls over them once again.

“You look like shit.” Jai comments looking her up and down.

“Have you looked in a mirror? You’re not exactly in the running for Prettiest Face at the moment yourself. God Jai did you even comb your hair today?” Frankie snaps back, trying to force the expected snark in her tone, but the overwhelming relief in seeing him again has her falling short. 

Jai sighs then softens both his eyes and his tone. “Come in Francesca, let's fix you up.” He’s already reaching for her when she steps forward and into his arms, wrapping herself around him and holding on for dear life. He holds on to her just as tight and for the first time in three months Frankie feels just the slightest amount of peace. “Are you OK?” Jai whispers softly in her ear. 

“Yes.” she lies. 

“Liar.” Jai responds. She doesn’t know why she tries with him. He always knows. 

“Francesca, are you ok?" He asks again. 

“No.” She whispers back in a voice so small and lost she can almost feel the tears she’s fighting to hold in escape through them. She will NOT cry.

Jai holds her tighter for a moment then pulls back to look her in the eye. All business once again. “Well you’re not going to get any better looking like you’ve been sleeping in the gutter with all those holes in your jeans and mud on your shoes. Really Francesca, your sense of style does leave something to be desired.” He pauses. “Good thing you keep clothes here. You go shower and wash that mess off you, while I burn these offensive scraps of material. Christ Francesca, they smell like dead fish.” 

Jai continues to ramble about the things he does for her as he collects a pile of clothes and towels he clearly already had waiting for her from a nearby chair and leads her towards the washroom. “Call me when you’re done and I’ll take care of that arm you’re trying so very hard to hide from me.”

Standing in the doorway of Jai’s washroom with a handful of clean clothes and fresh towels, Frankie feels for the second time in the less than five minutes she’s been here, a wave of love towards the man standing in front of her so powerful she almost lets the tears escape. She’s powerless to stop her already moving body from lunging towards him, almost dropping the towels as she wraps her arms around him once again. “I really missed you Jai.” She chokes out. 

“I missed you too.” Jai whispers back giving her a squeeze before peeling her off him. “But I’m serious, dead fish. Go wash.” Softly pushing her into the room and closing the door behind her. 

************************

Frankie spends longer than usual in the shower. Only emerging when the hot water begins to peter out. She’s scrubbed her skin so hard it’s pink and burns slightly, but the scrubbing makes her feel almost clean for the first time in months so she welcomes the pain. Maybe if she scrubs hard enough she can erase the memories of all those hands she thought would make her forget, but in the end only reminded her of what she lost. 

Wrapping herself in a towel Frankie stares in the mirror above the sink and looks herself in the eye for the first time in a long time. “Jai’s right, you do look like shit.” Frankie says to herself as she takes in the vaguely familiar person looking back at her. 

Her eyes look sunken, and dull. Her cheekbones press out against a too thin face and her colour is ashen despite the hot shower and the steam still lingering in the air. Frankie lets her towel drop to the floor and moves her eyes down her body taking note of the collar bone that sticks out a little too far, the ribs she can count, and the hip bones that while runway models love to show off, look sickeningly sharp and wrong on her usually toned frame. 

What draws her eyes most though are the recently acquired finger shaped bruises that grace her waist and stomach. Shame over how she got those bruises forces her eyes to squeeze shut and her chin to drop to her chest. She’s had similar bruises before, years before and more than once over the last 12 weeks. But for a short sweet while she didn’t, well not on purpose anyway. With a sad smile Frankie finds herself being sucked violently into yet another memory that she knows is going to break her heart.

*****************

  
_Sex with Will is better than Frankie had even imagined it would be. She knew it was going to be good. She knew that just from watching him move in the field. He’s athletic, powerful, strong and knows just the right way to move his body to get the best possible outcome. All traits that she knew would translate to her benefit in the bedroom. What she failed to account for however, was his primal need to please. He needs to please people, like he needs to breathe and does everything in his control to make those he loves happy. Lord knows he’s doing everything possible to make her happy. And she’s not above admitting he’s doing a damn good job of it too._

_They’ve officially been together for two months and Frankie knows exactly what Will likes and what he craves. Last night she used that knowledge to push him to a release so strong he couldn’t form a coherent sentence for quite a few minutes. She’s personally never been prouder. Standing under the punishing spray of the shower in his apartment she’s smiling at the memory of last night's rendezvous when she feels him enter the shower behind her. Turning towards him with a smug smile she continues to wash herself with the soap that leaves her smelling like him, rather than her own that remains untouched on the shelf._

_“You just keep coming back for more, huh Whiskey.” Frankie says as she runs her eyes from his face to his toes and back again._

_“If I didn’t you’d just come looking.” Will replies with a smirk of his own stepping under the spray and reaching for her._

_There’s a retort finding its way to Frankie’s lips when she sees a change in his eyes and his hands freeze on their quest to reach her. Frankie’s eyebrows snap together as she looks at him in confusion trying to figure out what just happened._

_“Will?”_

_“I hurt you.” He whispers, sounding anguished and slightly fearful._

_“What? What are you talking about?”_

_“I hurt you.” Will repeats and softly touches her waist. She looks down and watches as he begins lightly tracing the finger print bruises that mar her otherwise unblemished skin._

_His eyes snap up to hers and Frankie can see just how worried he is that he’s caused her pain. She hasn’t told him she does yet, but Frankie feels herself falling just a little bit more in love with him at that moment. She can read the apologies and see guilt in his eyes before his mouth even has a chance to open to release them, and acts before he can get them out._

_Wrapping her arms around his neck she pulls his mouth down to hers and kisses him with all the feeling of the words she’s not ready to say quite yet._

_Pulling back she looks him in the eye and smiles. “You didn’t hurt me Will. You never could, not in this way, not when you’re holding me so tight and loving me so hard. I promise.”_

_His green eyes hold the shadow of guilt but also the lightning glimmer of hope at her words and his fingers move away from the small bruises to lightly trace over the scar he gave her in France._

_“Bruises aren’t as cute as the scar.” He whispers, his fingers continuing to move back and forth over the permanent mark in a way he knows drives her crazy._

_“Hmm” Frankie hums out slowly as she feels desire pool in a place lower than that scar he left on her body. “Maybe if you kissed them better it would help.”_

_“You think so?” Will asks, already pushing her back against the wall and lowering himself to his knees before her._

_Frankie watches him through hooded eyes, tangles her hands in his hair and whispers out her last conscious thought for a while. “Only one way to find out.”_

****************

A rush of cool air hits Frankie’s skin and the memory disappears. Most women might be startled, scared, alarmed or any other synonym for fear at that sudden appearance of a man standing behind them while they stand naked in front of the bathroom mirror.

But Frankie is not any woman, and Jai has seen her in various states of undress so many times she stopped trying to count years ago. All modesty goes out the window when you’re a spy who often has to use your body as a tool. 

“That’s new.” Jai says and gestures to the small tattoo that has recently found a home on her right hip. 

Frankie rubs at it softly with her fingers and shrugs but says nothing in response. She doesn’t bother wrapping the towel around herself again. He’s eyeing her for other hidden injuries, nothing more. She lets him. He’d let her do the same if she asked.

“You were taking too long, I got worried and you didn’t answer my calls.”

“Didn’t hear them.”

“Obviously.” He continues to stare at her in the mirror. “I’ve got the first aid kit ready in the kitchen.”

“I’ll be right out.” Frankie says breaking eye contact and reaching for her clothes. 

Frankie knows it’s taking everything in him not to ask questions or make comments and she loves him all the more for it. With one last look of concern Jai turns and walks away headed further into the apartment to wait. She won’t make him wait any longer. 

Four minutes later Frankie is sitting at the table in Jai’s sunny kitchen sipping the specialty coffee he keeps around just for her while he inspects her injured arm.

“Jai?” She says softly, trying not to break the calm of his inspection.

“Hmm?” He grunts back.

“What happened?” She asks. She knows Will was hit by a car but she doesn't know the details and she needs to know.

“You left and the world went to shit.” Jai snaps. Then catches himself and offers a quick “I’m sorry.” 

Frankie stops breathing and pulls her arm from Jai’s grasp starting to rise and run.

“No, sorry. Stop, I didn’t mean it like that. Fuck Frankie, just sit down please.” He runs his hand through his hair and gets it caught on his bandage. “Ouch damn it. Fuck” Jai curses once again before heaving a sigh and sitting back in his chair. 

“Please Frankie just sit, I’m sorry. I haven’t slept in 36 hours. I’m tired and cranky, and sore and just so damn happy you're here. It’s all a little much.”

Frankie sits back down and looks at him. Really looks at him. What she sees scares her. He’s a mess. _I did this to him._ The thought runs through her mind and forces wetness into her eyes. 

“I’m sorry.” She manages to whisper. Not quite able to meet his eyes.

Jai runs his hand over his face and takes a deep breath. Reaching for her arm again he begins to tell her about the accident and both his and Will’s injuries. “I got off easy, nothing broken. Just banged up and a mild concussion. Will took the brunt of it. I would have died if he hadn’t pushed me out of the way.” Jai says more to himself than Frankie. 

“They took him into surgery as soon as we got to the hospital. They wouldn’t tell us much but Susan has a friend at the hospital who was able to pull his file. He had a lot of internal bleeding and they had to remove his gallbladder and part of his spleen. His left arm was broken in two places and they’re worried about possible bleeding and swelling in his brain so they’ve put him in an induced coma to try to help him heal.” Jai finishes. 

He’s said it all in such a factual emotionless way that it takes a moment for Frankie to process that this is all real and happening to Will and not a random person they don’t know. 

When it hits a second later her body reacts without thought. Jai still has his hands wrapped around her injured arm when she tries to stand again.

“Stop, what are you doing?” Jai questions trying to sit her down again.

“I need to get to the hospital. I need to be there. I need...I have too...” Frankie stutters, trying and failing to get her mind in order as her thoughts fly from one to the next.

“Frankie stop.” Jai speaks firmly, getting her attention and forcing her to sit back down again with a tight grip on her elbow. “Frankie look at me.” 

She looks at him with wild eyes and fear written all over her face. 

“There is nothing you can do right now. They won’t let you see him in the ICU because you’re not family, not in the way you're required to be anyway. Going to the hospital won’t do any good for you or for Will.”

“But if I could just…”

“Just what Frankie? Did you get a medical degree in the last few months? Did you learn how to be a surgeon and repair organs? Take classes with Florence Nightingale? Frankie there’s nothing you can do and you can’t see him until they allow visitors. That won’t be for a few days at least. If you go down there now, best case scenario you find yourself sitting in the waiting room with Susan and his parents watching them cry, worse case you end up in jail for trying to shoot your way past security. Either way it’s not what Will would want for you.” Jai finishes his speech at the same time he finishes cleaning her wound. She was too focused on his words to even notice when he started. 

“So what do I do?” Frankie asks in a small voice.

“We wait. We wait and we hope. Maybe even try that praying thing I hear so much about. Then we wait some more. And when he wakes up...well you two can go about fixing whatever the hell went wrong.” Jai says his eyes focused on her arm and the gauze he’s wrapping around it. 

“Jai...I don’t think...Will and I…” Frankie starts, but stops abruptly when Jai’s voice cuts through her own. 

“A ring Francesca, a fucking ring? All this because you didn’t want to deal with a silver band and some molten rock?” Jai blurts out loudly in frustration, but with still gentle hands on her skin. 

“What ring? What are you talking about?” Frankie asks, completely lost by the detour Jai has taken.

“Will’s ring. The ring he got for you. The ring that you found and made you run and turn all of our worlds upside down.” Jai continues without noticing her confusion.

Frankie’s heart slammed to a halt and the air disappeared from her lungs. _Ring? He had a ring? He was going to ask her to marry him?_ The questions swirled in Frankie's mind, making her dizzy as she tries to make sense of it. _No, no, no that can’t be true_ . But in her heart she knew it was. _He never got to ask._

“Of all the reasons to run…” Jai suddenly stops and lifts his eyes to hers. Taking in her pale face and too wide eyes. “You didn’t know?...” He whispers his voice trailing off in disbelief. 

Frankie shakes her head slowly, not able to find her voice. She stands a little lightheaded and walks to the window looking out at the city with unseeing eyes, the gauze Jai had been using falling to the floor, injury forgotten. 

She knew it was coming, of course she knew, she just hadn’t realized he already had the ring. If she hadn’t been so stupid, they could be... if she just…why couldn’t she just…why did she always fuck everything up…one moment, a fraction of a second in time...one decisions made without thinking...one mistake…her mistake…she didn’t know… One thought after another races around in her mind, no single one forming before moving onto the next. _Her fault, her fault, her fault._

“Frankie, I’m sorry Will told me…”

Frankie turns her gaze towards him “Will told you I left because he was going to ask me to marry him?”

Jai offers a small shrug and nod then says “He told me to tell you that he wouldn’t ask if you didn’t want him too. Said he’d throw the ring into the river and never mention it again if you’d just come back to him.” 

Frankie turns her eyes back to the window and presses her forehead to the cool glass. She can feel the tears welling in her eyes as she thinks of all the could have beens, and should have beens if she wasn’t such a fucking screw up. 

“I didn’t know.” Is all she says before she feels a tear slip down her cheek, then another, and another. 

“If that wasn’t it then why…” Jai stops and his voice trails off as she lets the tears fall, not bothering to wipe them away, and ignoring the question he should have known better than to ask. Deafening silence fills the apartment right before she hears him cross the room and feels his arms slip around her pulling her into a hug. 

He holds her while she silently cries. Francesca Trowbridge does not cry. At least she never used to. And certainly never in front of other people. But Jai isn’t just a random person. He’s her person. He’s safe. He’s seen her at her worst, and never judged her for it. Even now when she knows she’s hurt him, he holds her close and tries his best to offer her comfort. He’s far too good of a friend to her. But he’s all she’s has in the world to hold onto right now, and she’s holding on as hard as she can. He’s holding her back just as tight. 

She’s not sure how long they stand there embracing in the afternoon sunlight of a New York day, nore do either of them seem to care. She knows he wants answers. But she’s not ready to give them and she knows he won’t ask again. When she pulls back from him she offers him a small smile before moving to sit in the chair once again. Jai picks up the gauze and once more begins to carefully wrap the wound with a gentleness he reserves only for her. He ties the gauze off with the precision of a skilled surgeon and uses tension hooks to keep it in place. 

“No bandaids.” Frankie says, looking at his work and smiling slightly. 

“What like this is my first time patching you up?” Jai shoots back with a soft smile of his own. Then mutters more to himself than her. “Sometimes I think I know you better than you know yourself.”

Frankie agrees but doesn’t say it out loud. 

Cleaning up the first aid kit and throwing the used packages away Jai turns to her and gives her a look that tells her whatever is coming out of his mouth next is not up for discussion. 

“It’s almost 5:00. Why don’t I order us a pizza and we call it a night? We both look like crap. You more than me of course.” He smirks. ”I haven’t slept in nearly two days and I’m sure you haven’t had any real sleep in a while. Susan promised to text me if anything changes with Will and if in the morning we don’t hear anything I promise to help you break into the hospital records to find out ourselves. Deal?”

“Deal.” Frankie says, already knowing she’s not going to stick to it. And she knows Jai knows it too. But it will make him feel better if she agrees to his plan so she does.

“That’s my girl.” Jai says with a smile. 


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to everyone reading, offering kudos and leaving comments it really lovely to see them!
> 
> Please let me know if you want more or if you're done with it and I'll drop it like a hot potato!
> 
> As always all spelling, grammar, and just general mistakes are mine and mine alone no matter what! However, all my medical knowledge comes from playing the board game Operation and watching George Clooney on ER so all mistakes in that area are his fault. 
> 
> Nickell

Jai is snoring softly beside Frankie when she slips out from under the soft winter sheets just after 10:00pm. He has another bedroom in his apartment with a perfectly good bed in it, but after she fully examined his injuries for herself and heard his muffled groans of pain when he let her poke at him, she crawled into his bed right beside him wanting him close. They’ve shared a bed enough times over the years that neither thought twice about doing it again tonight, both needing the comfort of the other. She slept for almost four hours. A new record. But one that came with the assistance of Jai’s shared prescription pain meds so she can’t really count it. 

Dressing in the clothes Jai left for her, Frankie makes her way out of the room, her feet not making a sound against the faded hardwood floors of Jai’s apartment. It’s dark outside and she can barely see. Doesn’t matter though she’s been here enough times to know where everything is. 

She’s almost to the exit when she sees the bright yellow post-it note stuck to the door in front of her. Jai only uses yellow post-it notes. “I’m a purest.” he said to her once, turning up his nose and glaring at the pink sticky pages she tried to offer him. She never made that mistake again. 

**_Mount Sinai. ICU 8th Floor. Room 814_ ** is scrawled across the page in Jai’s bold and tidy script. Frankie smirks slightly as she peels it from the door and puts it in her pocket. _Better than I know myself._ She thinks as she makes her exit and starts down the stairs. 

It takes her almost 30 minutes to get to the hospital and another 10 to determine which hall of the ICU floor holds the room she needs to be in. Shift change is at 11:00pm and she finds it easier than expected to slip past the empty nurses station and down the hall to the room that holds her heart. 

Cracking open the door to room 814, she slips inside without a sound and without anyone noticing. Closing the door softly behind her Frankie’s ears are immediately assaulted with the sounds of beeping, clicking and air pumping through various machines. 

She can’t see the bed from where she’s standing and for an instant she’s thankful. She takes a moment to collect herself before she slowly begins to move, her legs trembling as they carry her forward.

Moving around the hanging curtain Frankie’s eyes land on the man in bed before her and she freezes. This isn't right. This isn’t Will. This man in front of her can’t be _her_ Will. Yet his name is scrawled across the white board above the bed alongside some numbers and letters Frankie doesn't have the focus to decode. 

There’s a fleeting moment of pure elation that fills Frankies chest. They got it wrong. It’s not Will that got hit by the car, this is some other man that just looks kinda like him. Will is safe, he’s OK, they made a mistake. 

But that moment quickly passes and reality once again sets in as she takes another step forward and looks closer. Behind the mask and the breathing tubes, the wires, and cables, she sees the truth. They weren’t wrong. She’s still the only one who made the mistake. 

Frankie lets her eyes roam over Will slowly as if she's scared she might miss something if she moves too fast, barely breathing as she does. She looks at his too long hair curling across his forehead where it peeks out from under the gauze that circles his head, the patchy hair on his face around where they’ve shaved it. She takes in his closed shadowed eyes and hollow cheeks then moves slowly down to his mouth, the tubes blocking where his resting smile should be. He looks small and weak lying in this bed. Small and weak are not words that should ever describe a man like Will Chase but they’re all that seem to fit right now. 

Her eyes pause on his left arm, now finding a home in a cast and she tries not to wonder at how many nights she fell asleep with that arm wrapped tight around her. She can’t see much more, he’s covered in a gown and thin blankets that make him look pale and washed out. At least she hopes it's the blankets making him look that way and not the unseen injuries below. 

Broken. He’s broken. The doctors are doing what they can to fix him, she reminds herself, but what they don’t know is that she broke him long before that car ever did. Doctors can’t fix the breaks she caused. 

He can’t know that she’s here; she decides then. She’s caused enough pain, hurt him enough. She just needs to know that he’s going to be ok, then she’ll disappear once again. In time he’ll move on and forget about her, it’s for the best. At least that’s what she tells herself. _You deserve so much better than me Will. So much better._

Even with her resolution made and her fate sealed with a vow of her own making Frankie can’t stop herself from reaching out and ghosting her hand over the fingers poking out from the blindingly white cast.

“I would have worn your ring Whiskey.” She whispers, knowing he can’t hear her but needing to say the words all the same. “I would have worn it and made sure everyone who saw it knew who I belonged to. Made sure they knew you chose me, and that you made me feel worthy of that choice.” 

Slowly and gently for fear of hurting him Frankie leans down and softly kisses the exposed skin of his hand letting her tears fall on his fingers. “I’m so sorry Will. I’m sorry I ruined it all. I’m sorry I hurt you.” Frankie hiccups as she whispers her apologies to him. 

“I’m sorry I let you waste your time loving me.” 

************

Frankie’s not there more than 20 minutes before she hears voices in the hallway approaching the room. She quickly but gently drops Will’s hand and darts into the adjoining washroom just as the door opens and she hears people inside. They’re quiet so she can’t make out all their words but she hears enough to know it’s a doctor and possibly a nurse who are reviewing Will’s chart. 

For close to five minutes she hides and listens desperately as they say words like blood pressure, and fracture, and bleeding. She risks getting closer to the gap where the door is not closed all the way, needing to hear more. 

It takes everything in her not to charge into the room and demand answers when she hears the words brain damage and paralysis. Her hand is on the door to do just that when she hears the doctor's voice again. 

“He’s a fighter. An FBI agent if I’m not mistaken. He’s strong and healthy. We won’t know for sure until the swelling goes down and we wake him up but I have a feeling he’ll make a full recovery.” There’s an air of assuredness in her voice when she says it and Frankie relaxes slightly. 

“Let’s make sure his IV is secure. It looks like the tape is slipping a bit here from where he’s bled a little. I want to keep him on the same combination of fluids and pain management for now, rotated every eight hours, we can monitor his levels from the nurses station so we can respond to any distress. He should be good until morning then we can run some more tests and see where we’re at.” 

Frankie can hear the quiet agreement of the nurse and listens to the rustling sounds of the room for a few more moments while they continue to move around tending to Will. 

She waits another five or so minutes after the door closes and the room falls silent except for the reassuring beeping of the machines, before leaving the small washroom and claiming her spot next to Will once again. 

“Hear that Whiskey.” She whispers softly to him, brushing the hair over this forehead. “You’re going to be just fine. The doctor said so. Just a few tests in the morning to be sure. You love tests. Always bragging about being top of the class... Please be ok.” She pleads.

Frankie’s eyes run over his body once more taking in the visible injuries and the bandages covered those that aren’t. They move slowly down his arm to his right hand attached securely to the IV with more medical tape than Frankie thinks it necessary, but then again as Jai reminded her just a few hours before, she’s not a doctor. 

Her eyes bore into his skin as she unconsciously picks at the gauze covering her own arm and poking out from beneath her sleeve to wrap around her hand. All those bandages and medical tape stuck to him, pulling at his skin and preventing her from feeling the softness she knows lies below. 

Too much tape on him, none on her. Never on her. He would never allow it...

*********************

_Frankie hates cooking. Well that’s not entirely true. She hates cooking for herself. She hates having to think about what's for dinner when she gets home from work. She hates having to prep and cook and clean just to make a meal for herself when she could just as easily throw one of those pre-made things in the microwave or pick up something on the way home._

_But she loves cooking for Will. She likes that he watches her as though she’s a five star chef as she flips a grilled cheese. Or proclaims he’s never had better and declares her a genius when she combines basic ingredients to make a pasta dish. And she especially likes how he begs her to double the chocolate chips when she makes him her mother’s banana bread._

_“More chocolate sweetheart.” He begs from across the counter where he sits watching her work._

_“No.” Frankie says firmly._

_“But you like chocolate.” He tries to reason with her._

_“Yes to the chocolate, no to the sweetheart. I’m not a child.” She responds not looking up._

_Will sighs at yet another failed attempt to find a pet name she approves of._

_She accidentally told him about a week ago in a moment of post orgasm induced weakness that her dad had given her a nickname only he used when she was a kid and how it made her feel loved and safe every time she heard it._

_Of course Will latched on and since then he’s been trying to find a way to address her when they’re alone that she’ll agree too. Frankie doesn’t understand why he can’t just use her name, they're adults not children, but he insists that he needs to find something that’s just his._

_If she’s honest with herself she kind of loves the amount of time he’s committed to this cause, and takes pleasure in hearing all the ridiculous and outlandish names he’s come up with so far. She might just let him keep at it forever._

_“Kitten?”_

_“Gross.”_

_“Lovey?”_

_“No.”_

_“Babe.”_

_“I’m not a small farm animal.”_

_“Baby.”_

_“Hello no.”_

_He falls silent again while she’s beating eggs for their only acceptable use; baking. She wonders if he’s given up. She should have known better._

_“Pookie?”_

_“Hard pass.”_

_“Petunia?”_

_“Do I look like a flower to you?”_

_“Kumquat?”_

_She doesn’t even dignify that with an answer._

_“Darling?”_

_“What are we, 90?” She snarks, truly believing he’s lost his mind with that one._

_Another pause. Then out of the corner of her eye she sees him sit up straight in his chair and hears the snap of his fingers._

_“I’ve got it!” He suddenly announces._

_“Do you now?” She questions with a smirk and the slight rise of one eyebrow._

_“Goose.” He proposes._

_“No. What? Will come on.”_

_“What, you’re like the Goose to my Maverick. Like in Top Gun you know. We watched it last week. You call me Whiskey all the time!” He declares like he’s excited to have found a loophole._

_“That doesn’t even make sense. Whiskey is your call sign of course I call you that. No one is stopping you from calling me by mine.” She reasons back with a dramatic roll of her eyes._

_“Fiery?”_

_“Yes Will, that’s my name.” She says like she’s speaking to a child while adding sugar to her bowl._

_She watches as he purses his lips and scowls slightly at her, before clearly making a decision. He stands, circles the counter and walks towards her using his body to press her against the flour covered countertop._

_Taking her face in his hands he softly brushes his thumbs over her cheeks before leaning in and kissing her so softly she’s not even sure he really did._

_He’s so close he’s whispering against her lips when he makes his thoughts known._

_“Nope, that’s not it. But I will find it. I vow it to you Frankie. I will find it and it will be perfect.” He says it with such resolute certainty that Frankie feels that there is no other choice but to mock him for it._

_Laughing against his lips she whispers back. “God, you’re such a dork. I can’t believe I’m baking for you.”_

_He hums against her lips pulling her tighter against him. “With extra chocolate chips even...you must really like me.” He playfully responds._

_“Could be a head injury.” She reasons. ”Jury’s still out.”_

_He kisses her soundly then steps back. “So sassy. No wonder your dad called you Cheeky Chesca.”_

_“Yeah.” She agrees with slight sadness at the memory of her father, but also happiness at the memories the name holds._

_She feels Will’s lips on her forehead and hears another promise to find the perfect endearment for her before he escapes to the living room to turn on some music and she turns back to her baking, adding a few more chocolate chips just for him._

_10 minutes later she’s got the bread in the oven and is reaching out to start the dishes when she knocks last night's wine glass off the counter and onto the floor with a loud crash._

_“Shit.” She mutters, reaching down without thinking and cutting the side of her hand on the sharp edge of the broken glass._

_“You ok?” Will shouts from the other room already making his way back towards her._

_“Yeah.” Frankie replies, turning on the fauset and running cold water over her hand while wrapping it in a paper towel._

_“What happened?” Will demands as he makes his way to her side trying to get a look at the injury._

_“Nothing, I just knocked over a wine glass that’s all.”_

_“Let me see.” Will says reaching for her hand._

_“It’s fine Will. No big deal it’s not deep.” She bristles, still not used to having someone other than Jai fuse over her._

_“Please let me see.” Will tries again, gently reaching out to grasp her hand._

_“Fine.” Frankie resigns._

_Will slowly unwraps the paper towel letting it fall into the sink and shuts off the water. She watches him closely as he assesses the damage noting the concern on his face and the same level of concentration in his eyes that he showed when he was trying to defuse a bomb that would have killed millions just a few days before._

_“Doesn’t need stitches.” He judges. “But we do need to bandage you up. Stay here.” With a quick kiss to her forehead he disappears down the hall to the washroom where she knows he keeps his first aid kit._

_He’s back with the kit and his hands are lifting her onto the counter before she has time to stop him. Stepping between her legs and taking her hand in his once again Will focuses himself on the task of cleaning her wound with the intensity of a field surgeon and a gentleness that steals her breath._

_Once it’s cleaned to his satisfaction he moves to grab some bandages from the kit sitting next to her on the counter. Frankie breaks the silence of the apartment and stops him. “No bandages.”_

_“What?” Will halts his movement and looks at her._

_“No bandages. Or tape. You can use the little tension hooks to hold gauze in place though. I keep some in my bag if you don’t have any.”_

_“Umm ok, a bandaid would be simpler though. I have one big enough here to cover the cut. I’d have to wrap the gauze over your palm to keep it in place with the hooks.” Will looks at her in confusion clearly baffled by her request._

_Frankie shrugs her shoulders at him and offers a simple. “I’m allergic to bandaids.” as her reasoning for the request._

_“What?” Will responds, clearly still confused._

_“I’m allergic to bandaids.” She repeats. “Well not the cotton part, just the adhesive so no medical tape either.”_

_“How did I not know this?” Will demands. Hands on his hips, and fire in his eyes. Agent Chase at his finest._

_Frankie just offers another shrug. “I dunno. Jai usually fixes me up when I get hurt and he knows not to use them whenever possible.”_

_A slow smirk takes up residence on Will’s face, his eyes showing signs of mischief and making Frankie wary of what’s coming next. She was right to be._

_“What?” she asks, already fearing the coming answer._

_“Nothing” He chuckles. “It’s just the idea that tough as nails Francesca Trowbridge, spy extraordinaire can be taken down by a bandaid.” His eyes fill with glee as he continues. “Good thing the bad guys don’t know or they’d be throwing Disney Princess adhesives at you rather than shooting bullets. Superman’s got Kryptonite. Fiery’s got glue.”_

_Frankie narrows her eyes. Yeah she’s going to need to take him down a peg or two...or ten. And she knows just how to do it._

_“Spiders.” One word. That’s all it takes and she feels him shiver._

_He stops laughing and pouts his lips at her. “You’re mean.”_

_“You love it.” She snarks back with a smirk of her own and uses her uninjured hand on his belt to pull him a little closer. She always wants him closer._

_“What happens when you have to use them.” Will questions all business once again and still looking slightly suspicious of this new bit of information about her._

_“Rash if they’re not on too long, welts that can take longer to heal than the injury sometimes if they are.”_

_Will looks horrified. “I’ve seen you with bandaids.” He accuses._

_“I wear them when I need to, then get rid of them as soon as I can.” She states factually._

_Will’s eyebrows creep together in worry as he slowly moves his hand to trace over the spot where the stolen FBI shirt she’s wearing covers the scar he gave her._

_“I used tape on you.” He says softly, a trace of guilt in his words. “Lots of tape.”_

_“Jai ripped it off me the second he saw it. He was not happy with you, called you some very nasty names if I recall correctly.” She teases trying to ease his worry._

_Will’s eyes shift and he looks at his first aid kit in horror as he sees the pile of bandaids sitting inside._

_“Relax Will, they don’t attack. It’s a pretty easy allergy to manage.” She says hooking her right leg around his hip and pulling him even closer._

_“Yeah, just don’t get hurt. Super easy for you.” He retorts, sarcasm on full display._

_“Super easy.” she confirms, reaching up and kissing the corner of his worried mouth._

_He sighs and goes back to his task of patching her up, a small frown not far from his lips as he does. When he’s done wrapping her hand he brings it to his mouth and kisses her palm like a mother would a skinned knee of a toddler earning him another eye roll and an added head shake._

_“I get to do it from now on.” He says resting his hands on the counter caging her in and looking her in the eyes._

_“You get to do what?” Frankie asks, looping her now gauze wrapped hand around his neck and into his hair._

_“Fix you.” He states. “If you get hurt, I get to be the one to fix you. I get to be the one to make sure you’re ok.”_

_“You’ll have to fight with Jai about that. He loves nothing more than yelling at me while he patches me up. He won’t like losing that privilege.” She says scratching lightly at the back of his head in a way she knows calms him._

_“He can yell at you after I’m done. I’m serious Frankie. I want to be the one to do it.” He says in a voice that leaves no room for debate._

_She needs to give him this one. She finds herself giving in more and more to him these days._

_Heaving out an overly dramatic Frankie style sigh and rolling her eyes the way she spent her teen years perfecting, she concedes. “Fine, but you need to be the one to tell Jai. I’m not getting in the middle of the two of you arguing over who gets to kiss my boo boo’s better.”_

_“Deal.” Will agrees with a smile that shifts to a smirk as he adds “Boo.”_

_“No.”_

_He laughs again. “I’ll find it.”_

_“Well why don’t you see if you can find it in the kitchen while you clean up this mess.” Frankie says slipping off the counter and making her way to the couch._

_“What? Why am I cleaning?” Will asked, baffled by this sudden plot twist._

_“Because you asked for extra chocolate chips and now I have gauze wrapped all over me so clearly I can’t clean anything.” Frankie says as if it’s the most obvious thing in the world, picking up a book from the coffee table settling into the couch cushions to read while she waits for the bread to bake._

_“But how do chocolate chips have anything to do with….” Will starts again still looking confused._

_“Cloth’s in the sink Whiskey start scrubbing.” Frankie cuts him off, her eyes not lifting from the page and sinking further into the couch._

_“So sassy.” Will mutters._

_“You love it.” Frankie replies having heard the mumbled words._

_Will chuckles reaching for the cloth. “I do love the sass...I really do.”_

_Frankie jumps slightly when two seconds later Will almost shouts “Sassy! That’s it! It’s what I love most about you. It’s perfect!”_

_“Whiskey, no.” Frankie says in a calm voice when her brain processes what’s happening. But she already knows from the excited way his face is lighting up and the overly happy look in his eyes she’s not going to be able to rectify this one._

_“Sassy. Sass. My Sass.” He says it like it's the most beautiful endearment in the world and not usually used as an insult. “Yep, I’m keeping it.”_

_He’s swiftly making his way towards her on the couch and she has little to no time to brace herself before he’s pulling her down the length of the couch, grabbing the book out of her hands and resting his body on top of hers._

_She gives him her best I’m not impressed look, but he doesn’t seem to care as he leans forward and catches her lips with his. “Sass. My Sass.” He whispers against her while he trails kisses from her lips to the spot he loves on her neck still slightly red from the attention it received the night before._

_Frankie is too caught up in the feeling of his hand sliding under her shirt to force out a no and ruin his fun._

_They can argue about it later is her last coherent thought before Will makes her forget what she was even going to argue about._

_The name stuck. The bread burned._

  
  


**********

  
  


Frankie doesn't know how much time has passed while she sits chasing memories and holding Will’s cool hand. She sits in the rooms only chair next to the bed, watching him breathe with the help of machines while a steady beep assures her his heart is still pumping in his chest. 

She’s so focused on the beeping, watching the bright red and green numbers on the screens and searching his face for any hints of discomfort that the sudden opening of the door startles her and has her immediately on her feet, moving to put herself between Will and the intruder, and reaching for the gun she took from Jai’s tucked into her pants at the small of her back. 

“Oh” Is the only sound that comes out of the mouth of the young nurse now standing at the end of the bed, looking shocked and suspicious at seeing Frankie at Will’s side. 

“You can’t be here.” She states with a slight southern drawl attempting to push some authority into her still startled sounding voice. “We don’t allow visitors on the night shift.”

Frankie just stares at her cooly, almost daring her to force her to leave. 

“You need to leave.” The nurse tries again when she gets no response.

“No.” One word is all Frankie says. But clearly her tone says more, and for a brief moment the nurse looks scared. 

The silence lingers for a strangled moment as the two women size each other up. Frankie’s not leaving, not without putting up a fight anyway. She doesn't want anyone to know she’s here so she’ll have to be quiet about it but she’s certain she can make this girl who doesn't even look old enough to have a driver's license let alone a nursing degree come around to her way of thinking pretty quickly. Years of training have made her quite persuasive when she needs to be. 

Frankie is just about resigned to the idea of having to flex her specialized skill set when the nurse opens her mouth again. “He’s FBI, his chart says so.”

Frankie says nothing just continues to look at the nurse and assess the mood of the room. 

“Are you FBI too?”

Frankie says nothing. She can’t. She’s not anything anymore. 

“You have a gun.” The nurse states starting to look nervous again, her eyes darting to the door.

“Yes.” Frankie finally responds, there’s no point in lying, the nurse can clearly see it hanging at her side. 

“But I’m not going to use it, you just startled me.” Speaking softly and offering a small smile, while tucking her gun back into her pants, Frankie is trying to lower the anxiety level of the woman before her. _Kill her with kindness_ is the plan Frankie quickly settled on. 

It’s Plan A anyway. Frankie is really hoping not to have to move on to Plan B. 

“Are you here to kill him?” The nurse quietly questions. 

Frankie looks the nurse in the eye and tries to keep her voice steady at the idea of her or anyone else killing Will. 

“No, I’m not here to kill him. I’m here too…” Frankie pauses trying to come up with a reason more for herself than the nurse. “I’m here to make sure he’s safe.” It’s the only thing she can think of. 

“He’s my...was my partner.” Frankie continues taking her eyes off the nurse as they travel once again to Will and to her own hand still wrapped around his. Her other hand coming up to wrap around her waist and rub at her hip. 

“Only family is allowed.” The nurse tries yet again.

“He is my family.” Or he used to be Frankie thinks as she lifts her eyes to the nurse once again. 

The nurse gives her a long appraising look. “He your forever man?” she asks, cocking her head slightly to the side. 

“Excuse me?” 

The nurse gives her another long lingering look then glances to where Frankie's hand has stubbornly remained tangled with Will’s, before smiling lightly with a hint of defiance that leaves Frankie momentarily confused. 

“I’ve never been one to stand in the way of love, karma and all that.” She says softly. Then pulls her shoulders back as if she’s made a momentous decision and is now following through, and continues in a firmer tone. 

“I think I heard this man might be needing some extra protection outside the usual hospital security seeing as how he’s an injured FBI agent and all that. Just to make sure he’s safe after visitors leave for the day, you understand. A partner might be able to do that. A special kind of partner anyway.” She finishes with a raised eyebrow and a determined look in her eye, as if trying to make it clear to Frankie that this could the only reason for the bent rules.

Relief washes over Frankie and the tension that had been holding her body hostage since the nurse entered slowly eases, and she slowly nods.

“Thank you.” Is all Frankie can manage to say. 

“Maggie.”

“Thank you, Maggie.” Frankie repeats, wishing for a moment that she was the type of person that hugged. Maggie has certainly earned one. 

With a soft smile and nod Maggie continues. “I work the graveyard shift at this end of the hall every night from 11pm to 7am, just in case you needed that information for anything."

“Good to know.” Frankie murmurs.

“It’s usually quiet the 15 minutes before and after shift change with us all meeting in the dispensary to discuss patient care. Almost no one in the halls at that time.”

“Seems like a valuable piece of information to have. For security purposes, of course.” Frankie acknowledges.

“Of course.” Maggie agrees. “In fact Mr. Chase is my last patient to check on before I head over to give my update before going home.” she declares as she moves around Will making notes on his chart and changing out his IV bags. 

Frankie’s eyes snap to the clock on the wall. 6:40am. How is that possible? Has she really been sitting here that long just staring at his face and holding his hand? The discomfort in her back tells her yes, she has spent hours leaning over him not moving more than a few inches. The exhaustion in her bones confirms it. 

She looks back at Maggie who is moving slowly towards the door. Before she reaches it she turns. “The day shift nurse is a real bitch. Stickler for the rules and not above calling security if she feels the need. Just in case that information might also be helpful for your protection plan.”

“I’ll add it to the file.” Frankie nods in understanding.

“I think I dropped a card with my number on it somewhere near the bed. If anyone had any questions that might be pertinent to Mr. Chase’s safety and recovery I would hope they find it and reach out.” Maggie continues very carefully. 

Plausible deniability must be something they teach in college now Frankie thinks. 

“Thank you.” It’s all she can think of to say as she sees the card lying square on Will’s chest. Slipping it in her pocket, she hears the door close and once again she’s alone with Will. 

She only has a few minutes left according to Maggie and she doesn't want to waste them. She also doesn’t know what she wants to say or do. _Not enough time._

Frankie reaches for Will’s face and runs her hand gently over his forehead, smoothing away a stray curl and the worry lines that weren’t there when she last saw him. Leaning forward she presses her lips to his skin and holds them there as she whispers “I love you so much.” Then adding. “Please be ok.” 

With another quick kiss this time to the side of his face Frankie straightens and squeezes Will’s hand one last time before pulling away and making her way to the door. If she looks back she won’t leave and that she is certain, won’t end in a way that will allow her to return. 

Frankie peers cautiously through the glass window of the door. Just as Maggie said the hallway is deserted. Slowly opening the door Frankie slips out of the room and down the hall back towards the stairs she climbed on her way in. 

She’s almost there just one last corner to turn, but when she does she stops cold and finds herself staring into the hard and hostile eyes of one Dr. Susan Sampson.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope it lives up to your expectations! Thanks for reading and leaving the love.

The small diner around the corner from the hospital where Will lies fighting for his life, is busy and loud. The smell of grease floats heavy in the air and the sounds of called order numbers barely rise loud enough to be heard above the throngs of conversation surrounding the booth that Frankie sits at across from Susan. 

They haven’t spoken since they’ve arrived other than to order coffee from the harried looking waitress. And Frankie doesn't want to be the one to break the silence. She doesn’t know what she’d say even if she did. 

_ Get it together Francesca you’re being an idiot. _ Frankie thinks to herself as she pulls at a loose thread from a tear in the seat cushion that keeps catching on her now too baggy jeans, before moving them to grasp her coffee cup hoping to warm her cold and numb fingers. 

_ You’ve been interrogated and tortured, hell you’ve been the one doing the interrogating and torturing. There’s zero excuse for squirming under the gaze of a woman you know so well and would have listed as a friend just a few weeks ago. A close friend. _

There’s no reason that Susan should be able to make her feel like a child who’s been caught stealing cookies from the jar. But that’s exactly how Frankie feels as she sits quietly, still not able to meet the psychologist's eyes. 

Before she joined the team Frankie was considered to be one of the top interrogators at the CIA. She was the one they called when they needed information from an unwilling source. She always got the information. She’s trained, top of her class even, with years of experience. 

She hasn’t got a chance against Susan. 

Genocidal dictators, terrorists and North Korean brutes could learn a thing or two from Susan, Frankie concludes as she moves her hands away from her coffee cup resting on the sticky table to her lap to hide the slight shaking. 

Her leg is bouncing under the table, and she knows she must look like a drug addict looking for a fix, she’s so jittery. Exhaustion and stress Frankie tries to reason. But she knows it’s the guilt and the look of disappointment she can see in Susan's eyes that’s making her feel uneasy. 

If Susan can look at her with this much disappointment, anger and sadness she can only imagine what Will’s eyes would offer up. She knows she wouldn’t have survived it. It’s why she had to leave. 

“I was wondering if you’d show up.” Susan says cooly, breaking the silence. 

Frankie doesn’t respond, continuing to look at the table rather than Susan.  _ God when did I become so weak? _

“Were you going to tell us you’re here?” Susan presses forward. 

Frankie offers a barely there shrug in response, reaching for her coffee and swallowing a sip of the scalding caffeine. 

“Frankie look at me.” Susan requests. Her suddenly kind tone makes Frankie risk a quick glance.

She sees the hostility previously found has shifted to pity and worry in Susan’s eyes and quickly steals her own away again. She can handle anger and resentment, she expected it, and saw it clearly at the hospital before Susan demanded she follow her, but not the concern and sympathy she sees now. She doesn’t deserve that. 

“Oh, pobrecita.” The Spanish endearment makes Frankie’s breath hitch. She doesn’t deserve this kindness. 

“Stop.” Frankie pleads barely above a whisper, but it’s loud enough for Susan to hear. 

Now or never Frankie decides, might as well get it over with now and then lick her wounds later.

“Please just stop. I know you want to yell at me, and tell me you hate me for what I did. I know you want to demand answers and call me every name in the book. I know you want to scream at me for everything that happened and the mess I made. So please just do it.”

When Susan simply stares at her Frankie takes a breath and chooses her next words carefully.

“I know you’re Team Will. Hell I am too. I know you hate me for what I did, but nothing you say is going to make me feel any worse, so just take your damn shots and say what you’re going to say so I can get out of here.” Frankie finishes forcing anger into her voice and fire in her eyes, hoping to draw Susan into a fight. 

If Susan is angry it will be easier for her to walk away. Frankie would rather be hated than pitied, forgotten than missed. 

Frankie is trying her best to hold eye contact. Trying to be tough and hardened and everything she once was. But she can tell that Susan’s not buying it, so she drops her eyes and starts picking at the chip in her mug with broken fingernails. 

_ Broke me in under a minute. Fuck she’s good. _

“You want me to hate you, to fight with you, to unleash a verbal assault so fierce you’ll feel the tongue lashing for weeks. Is that right? You want me to confirm every bad thing you believe to be true of yourself. Is that what you want from me Frankie? Hatred and loathing?”

“It’s what I deserve.” Frankie simply states.

“Oh Frankie.” Susan breathes out, sympathy filling her eyes once again. 

“Do they know who did it?” Frankie changes the topic suddenly, needing Susan to stop with the kindness. 

It works. Frankie can see her eyes harden and posture stiffen.

“Standish tracked the car. Some drunk college kids celebrating a birthday. They didn’t even notice they hit him. Driver’s been arrested and charged with DUI and vehicular assault, but that could be upgraded if…” Susan trails off her eyes clouding over at the thought of what if.

Frankie pushes the thought away, she can’t go there.

“How did you know I was here?” she asks instead.

“Jai.”

“Jai told you I was here?” Frankie questions finding that hard to believe.

“No. But he left the hospital so abruptly yesterday even after the doctors tried to get him to stay. I knew it could only be for one reason.”

“He told me he was released.” 

“He lied.” 

They both fall silent again. 

“I knew you’d show up anyway.” Susan offers, releasing Jai from any blame of giving Frankie up.

Frankie just looks at her and takes another sip of her coffee. 

Susan sighs her eyes softening again. “I don’t know what happened to make you leave the way you did. To hurt us the way you did. To hurt Will. But I do know how much you loved him, how much you loved our team. So whatever it was, whatever made you do it, it must have been bad. Worse than bad. Frankie if you would just…”

“Stop.” Frankie says again.

“Did someone threaten you Frankie? Did someone threaten Will? Were you trying to protect him? Is that why?” Susan asks her voice coming quick, her accent becoming thicker as she gets increasingly upset.

Frankie shakes her head and opens her mouth to plead with her to stop but Susan beats her to it.

“Then why Frankie, everything was great right up until a few days before. You were fine. You were making plans for Christmas and so excited about the perfect gift you found for Will. Frankie you were happy. So happy.”

“Susan please.” Frankie pleads as she feels her eyes getting hot and wet, and tries to blink the tears away. She can’t do this, not here.

Susan stops and reaches for Frankie's hand across the table. Frankie lets her. She knows she shouldn’t, knows it will be worse when she has to leave again, but she can’t stop herself from relishing in the comfort of kindness even for this one small moment. 

“Did someone hurt you Frankie?” Susan asks softly, her thumb rubbing across the back of Frankie's hand. 

“Just a small accident.” The change in subject sends relief coursing through Frankie, thinking Susan is referring to the gauze wrapped around her hand. 

She wasn’t.

“That last mission right before you left. Those men that grabbed you in the bar. You were missing for almost an hour. Banged up pretty bad when Will got to you. Your clothes were torn. I remember you had to borrow one of Will’s hoodies for the plane ride home. Did they hurt you Frankie?” Fear and sympathy clearly evident on Susan’s face while she asks. 

“Susan, no.” Frankie promises. Closing her eyes, and trying to ward away the memories.  _ My fault, my fault, my fault. _

“Did they hurt you? Did Will say something about it, did he…”

“Susan stop!” Frankie almost yells causing those around them to turn and stare. Frankie doesn’t care though she’s angry now and needs to make her response very clear. 

“You know better than anyone else that if that had happened which it didn’t for the record, Will would be the last person to make me feel bad about it or ashamed in any way. You know that. You know how good he is. Don’t you fucking dare suggest otherwise.” 

Livid now Frankie can’t hold back and continues on her angry tirade not caring if she hurts Susan’s feelings or if the family in the next booth objects to her choice of words. 

“He didn’t fucking do anything, no one did anything, it was me I was the one, I did it, I fucked up, no one but me. I caused this shit show we’ve landed in.” Frankie pauses slightly out of breath. 

The sounds of a baby wailing on the other side of the diner has her lowering her voice as she finishes.

“But it would have been worse if I stayed. I’m saving him from that.” 

The two women stare at each other, both now angry and upset. Frankie beyond pissed that someone let alone Susan could think so little of Will. 

Susan, confused and upset over the sorrow she’s seen in her best friend's eyes the last three months and the pain she’s seeing in Frankie's eyes now. 

Both carrying the fear of Will never waking up. 

Susan is the first to pull her eyes away. “I’m sorry.” She whispers.

“Yeah me too.” Frankie sighs, apologizing for more than just her words this morning.

“I should go.” Frankie says after a moment grabbing her jacket and moving to get up from the table.

Susan doesn’t say anything just looks unseeingly at the table, fingers resting at her lips.

Frankie pauses just as she’s about to stand and looks back.

“Susan?”

“Yeah?”

“Did he really have a ring?” Frankie asks, then holds her breath waiting for the answer, not knowing what she wants it to be.

“His grandmothers.” Susan confirms looking at her with a sad smile. 

Frankie feels the wetness pooling in her eyes again. 

“He thinks I left because of it? That I left him because he wanted to marry me?” 

“You didn’t give him a reason otherwise. What was he supposed to think?”

Frankie turns her head away quickly brushing at the tear that escaped before Susan saw it.

She saw it of course, but neither acknowledged it. 

Standing up from the table Frankie offers a soft goodbye before moving towards the door, but freezes when a hand grabs her and pulls her into a hug. She forgot how fast Susan could be. 

Frankie slowly wraps her arms around the body of the woman who has every reason in the world to hate her but is somehow still acting like a friend and finds herself squeezing back with everything in her. 

“I’m sorry Susan.” Frankie mutters into her shoulder. 

“I know you are, pobrecita.” Comes Susan’s whispered reply. “He loves you more than anything in the world Frankie. And you love him just as much, I know you do, I’ve seen it. Whatever happened, it can be fixed Frankie, you just need to talk to him.”

Frankie doesn’t respond, just hugs her tighter. It can’t be fixed, and she can’t let herself hope that it could. The idea of having him back only to lose him again when he can’t forgive her is too much pain to imagine. 

  
  


****************

It’s almost 10am when Frankie lets herself into Jai’s apartment with the key she’s carried around the world with her. After her coffee with Susan she walked around the city aimlessly and alone thinking about Susan’s words and actively avoiding anywhere that might cause a memory of Will to enter her mind. 

She sends Maggie a quick message asking that she update her if she hears anything about Will’s test results then waits patiently for the affirmative reply while she roams the city, before making her way home to Jai. 

She’s exhausted and restless and wants nothing more than to go back to the hospital to be with Will, but knows she can’t for another 13 hours. It’s going to be a long day. 

The smell of breakfast hits Frankie in the face as soon as she walks in the door and her stomach immediately reminds her that she’s not eaten since their early dinner the night before. 

Making her way to the kitchen she sees Jai standing at the stove with his back to her, and leans against the doorway to wait for the lecture she knows is coming.

Jai doesn't disappoint. 

“You promised to sleep.” He accuses without turning around.

“I did, four hours.” She leaves out the fact that’s in a new record. He’ll just worry. 

“You promised not to leave.” Another accusation.

“You knew I was going to.”

“You snuck in to see him.” It’s a statement not a question.

“You left me the sticky note with his room number.”

“Did you get caught?”

“You taught me better than that.” Frankie says, trying to distract him with praise. 

“Did you get caught?” He asks again.

“Yes.” Frankie admits on an exhale, as she moves to sit at the table already set for breakfast. Jai does not like it when people try to help him in the kitchen. Frankie learned that one the hard way.

“But you didn’t let them kick you out did you?” Frankie swears she can hear both pride and amusement in his voice.

“I made a friend.”

“Of course you did.” Jai says with even more amusement ringing through. 

“Anyone else catch you?” He continues his line of questioning as he pulls some bread from the toaster.

“Susan already called you didn’t she?” Frankie deadpans, picking up the glass Jai had set out for her.

“Yes and I was scolded quite thoroughly for hiding you.” Jai mutters as he pulls some jelly from the fridge and brings it to the table with the now toasted bread.

Frankie snorts into her orange juice before turning serious and glaring at Jai. “She told me you left the hospital when the doctors wanted to keep you in.”

“I had things to do.” Jai bristles.

“You lied to me.” 

“And yet we both survived the night.” Jai brushes off her accusation as he returns to the kitchen to grab the rest of their meal. 

“Breakfast is ready and you need to eat. Those are supposed to be skinny jeans Francesca, they look ridiculous.” He calls back as he’s walking away. 

“They’re not that bad.” Frankie defends. 

“They’re hideous.” Jai says, making the statement as he re enters the room and places a plate in front of Frankie.

“Eggs?” Frankie questions scrunching up her nose is disgust. 

“Yes.” 

“Jai come on…”

“You know the rules.” Jai points out firmly. “You force me take care of you after a stupid injury you eat eggs. And that my dear Francesca looks like a stupid injury.” He finishes pointing at her injured arm with the fork in his hand. 

“It was not!” Frankie argues. 

“Oh my mistake. Did you get it rescuing a kitten from a tree? Orphans from a burning building? Puppy from a well? Some other Mother Teresa approved way?” Jai asks as he raises an eyebrow in challenge, sarcasm dripping off his every word. 

“No.” Frankie says with a frown. 

“Wanna tell me how you got it?”

“No.” Frankie’s responds, frown turning into more of a pout. 

“Then it was stupid. Now eat your punishment or we’ll have them for breakfast again tomorrow and maybe even the day after that.” Jai says taking a bite of his now buttered toast.

Frankie mumbles an obscenity, and a threat to find a new place to stay as she picks up her fork, resigned to the culinary torture she’s about to suffer.

Jai glares from his spot across from her “I’m thinking quiche for dinner tonight. A fancy one with onion and mushrooms perhaps.” 

Frankie swears she can feel her face turn green. “You wouldn’t...” 

“Wouldn’t I? Might even add bacon to it. Spice things up you know?” Jai teases...Lord she hopes he’s teasing. 

“It was a stupid injury. I’m sorry.” Frankie concedes defeat quickly. Anything to avoid the nightmare inducing mix of ingredients he’s describing. 

“You should be.” Jai confirms. 

“Can I have ketchup at least?” Frankie asks, submitting herself to the eggs but still holding out hope of a tomato flavoured rescue. 

“You may not!” Jai quickly steals her hope away. 

Frankie huffs, glares at the yellow pile of mush on her plate, scrunches her nose, takes a bite, and forces herself to chew and not gag. 

Jai watches her from across the table as she shudders, a tremor shaking her entire body as she swallows. She really hates eggs. 

“Oh for God’s sake.” He mutters and pulls out a bottle of Heniz he had hidden under the table just for this reason. 

With a dramatic flair Jai pops open the top and squeezes a quarter size dollop on the top of her egg pile before snapping it shut again and making the bottle disappear like a magician would a rabbit. 

“Doesn't mean I’m not mad at you.” He says as he picks up his fork once again.

“I love you too, Jai.” Frankie says with a smile as she dips her fork back into her now ketchup covered punishment. 

  
  


***************

Jai sends Frankie for a nap around noon insisting that she's cranky and annoying him. She accuses him of being the one that’s cranky because he’s in pain and won’t take his pills. 

In the end they both wind up falling asleep in his bed while watching reruns of Magnum P.I. (The new one not the old one. They both agree that Tom Selleck’s mustache is just creepy.) 

The TV is still on but muted when Frankie wakes up still exhausted and now alone shortly after five (new record!) only to find another yellow post-it where Jai’s head used to be.

**Went to sit with Susan at the hospital. Nothing wrong just to keep her company. Home around 6, I’ll grab dinner. - J**

For a moment Frankie is mad he didn’t wake her, or ask her to go with him. But then she remembers she can’t. She doesn’t want Ray or Standish to see her and ask questions. She doesn’t want the nurses or security to see her and question why she might be there again if they see her at night. She definitely doesn’t want Will’s parents to see her, and demand to know why she abandoned their son just days before she was to celebrate Christmas with them in Indiana. 

Most importantly she doesn’t ever want Will to know. Better to let him think she didn’t care enough to come. It’s a long shot that Susan won’t tell him she knows, but maybe if she begs her not to, she'll hold off long enough for Frankie to be long gone again. 

Frankie is comfortable in Jai’s bed. It’s familiar and smells like his cologne. For the first time since she ran from Will’s bed she feels safe enough to sleep without the worry of what might come for her while she rests. 

She’s not relaxed, and she knows she won’t have any relief from the tension she feels until she knows for certain that Will is going to be OK. But she’s exhausted from months of too little sleep and the emotional rollercoaster she’s been riding the last 48 hours, so she’s going to take advantage of the comforts she’s being offered by the pillows and blankets surrounding her. 

With her alarm set for 9pm if by some miracle she sleeps that long, and Jai expected back within the hour, Frankie remains in bed and dozes. Fingers tracing over the tattoo on her hip softly, eyes more than half way closed she’s almost back to sleep when pixelations of bright pink flash across the TV encouraging her to open her eyes more fully and focus on the screen. 

She recognizes the show but can’t place the name, and she’s still so tired she can’t bring herself to care enough to try to search her memory. But she knows she’s seen it before, and she knows who with. 

“Whiskey…” She breathes out before closing her eyes and letting sleep take her once more. 

****************

_ “I can’t believe you’ve never seen it Frankie.” Will proclaims looking at Frankie in amazement.  _

_ It’s a Sunday afternoon in late September and with the cold and blowing rain of a surprise thunderstorm raging outside they’ve declared it a pajama day at Will’s apartment choosing to spend their day cuddling on the couch eating cookies and popcorn next to a fire and the big screen TV.  _

_ “I don’t know what to tell you Will.” Frankie responds with a shrug that allows the blanket to fall off her shoulder much to her displeasure.  _

_ “But it’s iconic.” Will tries again as if he doesn’t believe her. _

_ “Why would I want to watch a show about spies? I am a spy. I live it. It’s literally my job. Yours too just in case you forgot.” Frankie snarks at him.  _

_ Will narrows his eyes at her in the way she thinks is adorable but would never tell him and declares her to be sassy once again. _

_ “We’re watching it right now. You’re going to love it.” Will moves to get up from the couch and she does the most embarrassing thing she thinks she’s ever done in her life. She clings to him. _

_ “Wait no, why are you leaving?” She demands in a whine trying to pull him back to her.  _

_ He laughs softly and kisses her on the forehead before pulling free. “I just have to get some more water. I'll be right back to snuggle you. Relax Sass.” _

_ “I don’t snuggle. I just want you for your body heat.” She tries and fails to recover. “And don’t call me Sass.” She adds, when she sees the cocky smirk she loves appear on his lips. She won’t tell him she loves that either. She’d never live it down. _

_ “Just want me for my body. Got it.” He continues to smirk as he heads to the kitchen to get more water and another handful of cookies from the baking sheet sitting nearly empty now on the counter.  _

_ Frankie hears him still softly laughing in the kitchen and has to force herself to scowl at him through the smile trying to press upon her lips in an attempt to look tough. God how she loves this man.  _

_ Settling back into the couch after offering Frankie the cookie that clearly has the most chocolate pieces in it as an apology for stealing his body from her, Will hit’s play on the TV and pulls Frankie impossibly closer as they watch.  _

_ “What’s it called again?” Frankie asks, her head settling on Will’s chest.  _

_ “Alias”  _

_ Frankie tries to pay attention. She really does. In fact she can see herself actually liking the show...if she didn’t get so much pleasure out of keeping up a running commentary to distract and annoy Will. He’s cute when he’s annoyed.  _

_ “Who’s that?” _

_ “Sydney” He answers her first question patiently. _

_ “She’s a student?” _

_ “Also secretly CIA.” He mutters back clearly trying to pay attention. _

_ “That makes no sense.” _

_ “Shhhh, watch.” _

_ “Oh who’s that guy? I like him.” _

_ “That’s the bad guy Frankie, we don’t like him.” _

_ “But I like his tattoos. Oh she killed him...well that’s not nice.” Frankie grumbles. _

_ “You’d have done it too.” Will insists. “Probably would have enjoyed it.” _

_ Frankie silently and completely agrees. _

_ “Do you think she’s prettier than me?” Frankie asks as they watch the now pink haired spy being tortured. _

_ “No. You’re a better shot too before you ask.” Will responds kissing the top of her head and running his hand down her back.  _

_ Frankie smiles even though he can’t see her face, she’s not self conscious about her looks, but still she likes how firm and fast he was with his answer.  _

_ “Oh now who is he? He looks great in that suit with all that shaggy hair.” Frankie asks, enjoying the sudden tensing that she feels in Will’s chest.  _

_ “That’s Will…he doesn’t look that good…”  _ **_her_ ** _ Will scoffs, causing Frankie to smile against him once again.  _

_ “Wait now this new agent guy is interesting, yep this guy I like. His eyes are so green.” Frankie says with an appreciative sigh several minutes later.  _

_ “My eyes are greener.” Will returns clearly offended. _

_ “Mmhmm” Frankie hums back enjoying ruffling Will’s feathers a little, before falling silent once again.  _

_ “Are you sure this guy is CIA and not FBI?” _

_ “Vaughn?” Will questions. “Yeah why?” _

_ “He just seems a little too soft to me, too uptight for the CIA. Too pretty.” _

_ “I’m FBI.” Will says, sounding scandalized. _

_ “And you’re very pretty.” Frankie teases, reaching up to pat his cheek eyes still on the screen. _

_ Will harrumphs under her, his hand traveling further down to give her bottom a swift pat as he once again whispers “Sassy.” _

_ “Don’t call me that.” Frankie responds more out of habit than anything else.  _

_ When the episode is over Frankie turns her body so she’s more lying on top of Will than beside him. _

_ “Well what did you think?” He asks, lifting his hand to tuck a stray hair behind her ear.  _

_ “If you ignore all the ridiculous, outlandish, and over the top spy stuff it’s pretty good. It’s definitely given me a few ideas for things I want to ask Jai about.” Frankie says thoughtfully.  _

_ “So we can watch another episode?” Will asks excitement shining in his eyes.  _

_ “Is that gorgeous shaggy haired guy in it? Or the FBI guy with the eyes?” _

_ Will frowns at her suspiciously “Maybe I don’t want to watch it now.” _

_ Frankie laughs leaning forward to press her lips against his as she says “Please Will, please let me watch this educational show so I can learn how to be a spy and save the world. Please Will, please.” _

_ She squeals in the most undignified manner when Will moves fast and flips them so he’s on top of her pressing her into the couch and holding her there with his body.  _

_ “So damn Sassy.” He says leaning down and pressing his lips to hers again. _

_ “Stop calling me that.” She demands again, even as she’s pulling him closer and wishing with all her heart that he never does.  _

_ “Never.”  _

_ They never got around to watching the second episode.  _

_ ************** _

Jai is shaking her wake. He’s not being gentle about it either. “Frankie wake up.”

“What Jai, what time is it?” She mumbles through the fog of sleep, rolling over to look at him then freezing when she sees the grime shadows on his face and the torment in his eyes.

“Francesca.” He starts. 

_ No No No. _ Frankie screams in her head, not able to pull enough air into her lungs to ask the question she fears the answer to. 

_ No... _


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was going to wait until tomorrow to post but I got my report cards done early and so I'm going to throw my computer out the window for a few days and I didn't want to wait until I got back. Will could die!
> 
> Not a doctor...don't even play one on TV. But I can apply a Glow in the Dark Paw Patrol Bandaid like no one's business. 
> 
> Sadly that is the extent of my medical knowledge so any and all mistake are totally my fault.
> 
> Thanks to everyone reading and those leaving the love I really appreciate it!
> 
> I hope it you like it, and if you don't or something is not working please let me know that too so I can do some fixing.
> 
> Stay safe out there my little Friskeys!
> 
> Nickell

4am finds Frankie sitting in the stairwell on the 8th floor of Mount Sinai Hospital, eyes glued to the small window of the heavy steel door with a direct line of sight to the elevators. She’s been there for hours, eyes never wavering, shoulders tight, fingers running back and forth over the tattoo on her hip. Watching, waiting, praying for the elevator doors to open and Will to be wheeled through. 

Jai was with her for a while refusing to leave her until she growled at him and insulted his suit. He’s downstairs with Susan and Ray now, but texts her every 30 minutes without fail. They’ve all been here all night waiting for news. 

Internal bleeding, emergency surgery, cardiac arrest. The words float in Frankie’s head on a loop. Each one being chased with an idea of how to make the driver of the SUV that caused them suffer. 

Over two hours. 147 minutes to be exact. That’s how long it took them to find, fix and repair the damage. It took another three minutes to restart Will’s heart. Frankie’s sure her own heart won’t start again until she sees him. 

He’s been in recovery for hours, he might be there for many more. Frankie doesn’t care, she’ll stay here as long as it takes. She needs to see him.

Frankie feels her phone buzz in her pocket. She’s reaching for it at the same moment she sees Maggie step into her line of sight and stand at the ready facing the elevators. A quick glance at her phone confirms it, he’s on his way up.

Frankie watches as Maggie turns and stares directly at the door behind which Frankie now stands, and sends her a small nod before focusing on the elevator once more. Maggie can’t see her but she knows she’s there waiting for news and the chance to slip in and see him. _Maggie really needs to work for the CIA_ Frankie thinks, she found her hiding spot not long after she’d arrived for her shift and promised to keep her informed. 

A faint _ping_ announces the arrival of the elevator car and Frankie watches as the doors slide open revealing a bed holding a very frail looking Will. 

Frankie’s breath catches and she presses her fingers to glass as she sees him being wheeled through the doors and out of view. 

Another vibration in her pocket has Frankie reaching for her phone again. A sort, sweet and threatening message from Jai that makes her smile just for a moment. **Home to sleep. Don’t get caught.**

Frankie types back an equally short reply. **You taught me better.**

**Egg.**

**Eggplant.**

With that done Frankie returns to the stairs to wait, eyes never leaving the window. 

It takes almost 45 minutes for Maggie to send her a message saying it was safe for Frankie to slip into the room. It takes Frankie less than 30 seconds to do just that.

“He looks worse than before.” Frankie says quietly once she gets close enough, taking Will’s hand in hers and feeling for his pulse with her fingers. She needs to be sure. 

“The blood is pooling now so more bruising will show. They had to transfuse almost five units during surgery. “ Maggie softly explained. “Lucky they had enough of his type on hand, it’s a rare one, often hard to find.”

“He donates blood every three months like clockwork, just for that reason.” Frankie says, pride leaking into her voice. 

“Well then I’m sure he’ll be happy to be getting some of it back.” Maggie assumes. 

“No, he’ll feel guilty about taking something someone else might have needed more. Probably start donating once a month now just to make up for it.” Frankie insists, knowing without a shadow of a doubt she’s right. 

Both women fall silent once again, the only sound in the room coming from the beeping machines and Will’s raspy breathing aided by the tube in his throat. Maggie is fluttering around making adjustments to tubes and wires and noting something on Will’s chart before returning it to the hook at the foot of the bed.

“It’s almost 5am. Only two hours left on my shift, but I’m sure it will be quiet until then.”

Frankie gives her a nod in understanding before focusing on Will again. 

“I’ll see you tomorrow?” Maggie asks on her way to the door.

“Maybe” is all Frankie can promise. She’s not sure how long she can stay. She’s not sure how long she can be this close to him before she won’t be able to leave again. She’s afraid she might have already stayed too long. 

******************

She’s back the next night, and the night after that. She sits in the hard plastic chair, holds his limp hand in hers and watches him sleep. She can tell he’s dreaming sometimes. His face twitches, or his eyes move under their lids, eyelashes fluttering with each movement. They took his breathing tube out on the second day and that night she watched his resting smile slowly return. 

She wants to talk to him, wants to explain, apologize and beg for forgiveness. She wants to tell him that she loves him beyond all measure and wants nothing more than to belong to him forever. But she can’t. She can’t risk him hearing her confession. She couldn’t watch the hatred build in his eyes when he found out. So she sits quietly and watches over him. 

She used to love watching him sleep, he always looked younger and carefree when he slept. Her own sleep is often tormented by memories of those she’s lost; she envied his ability to sleep relaxed and unbothered. He caught her doing it more than once and called her names like sweet, and adorable, and cute. Words that should have made her gag and feel embarrassed but made her feel warm and tingly instead. 

She knew he did it too, though it was harder for him since she seemed to know whenever he was. More often than not she’d open her eyes within a few seconds and label him a stalker or a psychopath or whatever her sleep addled brain could come up with in the moment. Sometimes she didn’t even open her eyes at all, just squeezed in closer to him and told him to sleep not creep. 

She’s always hated when people watched her sleep. It makes her feel vulnerable and stupid and uncomfortable. It’s different with Will though. It has been since the start. 

*************************

_July 4th in Spain is far less exciting than it is in America._

_“What do you mean there’s no fireworks?” Standish demands._

_“Why would there be fireworks?” Frankie asks, wiping some sweat from her brow. It’s dusk and not overly hot but it’s getting to her as they sit on the patio of the restaurant housed inside their hotel. Mission complete, they're relaxed and enjoying one last night in the seaside city of Valencia before heading home._

_“Umm because it’s the fourth of July!” Standish responds as though he’s talking to a child._

_“He can’t be serious.” Frankie says looking at Will and lifting her frozen vodka filled lemonade to her forehead trying to cool down._

_“We’re not in America kiddo, it’s just another day on the calendar here.” Will replies patiently then looks at Frankie, his eyes narrowing at her slightly._

_“Excuse me, what? It’s the best holiday of the year. You get to blow things up and drink in excess and no one bats an eye. How is the whole world not doing this?” Standish asks, acting completely scandalized by the news._

_“You’re an idiot.” Jai deadpans._

_“Well I never….” A now offended Standish starts._

_And they’re off, hurling insults and launching verbal attacks across the table faster than Frankie is able to keep up with. She can hear them bickering and Susan trying to mediate but she’s not following. She closes her eyes against the setting sun still too bright behind her sunglasses. She’s too hot, her stomach is turning and she can feel a headache building behind her eyes._

_“Frankie.” She hears Will call. Feels his hand settling on her leg under the table._

_“Hmmm.” She offers back, it's all she can manage suddenly, bile raising in her throat._

_“Frankie are you ok?” The worry is evident is Will’s voice, though it sounds further away than it did a second ago._

_“Hmmm.” She mumbles again, throwing dignity out the window and leaning to rest her forehead on Will’s arm, hoping it will keep her from sliding off her chair. “Need to lie down.” She adds in a whisper._

_The sound of a glass smashing and a chorus of voices calling her name is the last thing Frankie remembers before the world goes black._

_********************_

_Someone is trying to drown her. She’s going to die. She’s going to die under the water. Someone is holding her down. Need to move. Need to get out._

_“Frankie stop flailing around I’ve got you.”_

_Will. Will’s here. He won’t let her drown._

_“Frankie sweetie, open your eyes.” Comes a soft request._

_Susan?_

_Frankie opens her eyes slowly to find the faces of her team staring back at her. Well most of her team. Will is behind her, arms securely wrapped around her waist while she sits in his lap on the floor of her hotel room's shower under the pounding spray of cold water._

_“Welcome back.” Jai says relief flooding his face, before it darkens slightly. Yeah she’s totally getting yelled at soon._

_She feels Will press a kiss to the back of her head and squeeze her just a little tighter before he says “You passed out.”_

_“Oh.” Is all Frankie can think to respond, shivering a little as the cold water continues to beat down on them._

_Jai leans forward and presses a piece of white plastic to her forehead and holds it there until it beeps._

_“100.4” He reads, relief filling his eyes once again. Then annoyance as he tries to wipe the water off his now damp suit sleeve. Yeah she’s in shit for sure._

_“She’s shaking, let’s get her out of the water. Standish go grab some towels and a bottle of water from the fridge.” Susan instructs reaching for the tap and thankfully stopping the water’s frigid assault._

_Frankie feels Will kiss her head once more before shifting her weight so he can lift her off the floor._

_“Come on pobrecita, let’s get you up.” Susan murmurs and with the help of Jai they pull Frankie from Will’s lap and move her to sit on the bench beside the vanity._

_“What happened?” Frankie asks once the room stops spinning._

_“Heat stroke as best as we can tell. You spent a lot of time hiding in that car trunk today. Combine that with the vodka you had at dinner and it was a recipe for disaster.” Susan says softly pressing a towel to Frankie’s face trying to dry her off._

_Standish is back with the water and handing it to Frankie. She tries to open it, she really does but her hands are shaking too much to work properly. Standish snatches the bottle back before anyone can react and opens it for her before handing it back._

_Frankie lifts her eyes and readies her mouth for a threat, but the worry in his eyes stops her and she offers a simple thank you instead._

_“Not too fast Frankie.” Will instructs softly, coming to kneel by her side and resting a hand on her knee as she lifts the bottle to her lips._

_They all lapse into silence for a moment, watching her sit with her head bowed taking sip after sip of water, rehydrating and helping her body recover._

_Frankie’s head begins to clear and with it comes embarrassment. Frankie can feel it burning in her chest and rising to her cheeks. The longer they watch her the worse it’s getting. She needs them not to be here, she hates looking weak. They need to go._

_She shifts her eyes to Jai and he immediately understands her silent plea._

_“Standish, bring me the boxers and tank top from under the left side pillow.” Jai’s instructions begin. “Susan, I need you to track down some Aspirin and a cloth we can keep damp behind her neck.”_

_Both move immediately and are out of the room within seconds allowing Frankie to breathe that much easier. But Jai’s not done yet, he saved the hardest for last._

_“You need to get out of those clothes, you’re making a puddle.” Jai says having turned his eyes to Will._

_“I’m not leaving her.” Will responds, eyes firmly planted on Frankie’s face. Frankie can’t look at him. She wants him here, but she needs him gone. Just for a moment. Just long enough for her to regain some semblance of control._

_Jai knows this. He knows what she needs and come hell or high water, he’s going to make sure she gets it. “By the time you get back she’ll be ready for you to hover over her until your heart's content.” Jai responds in a tone that carries a slight warning._

_“I’m not..”_

_“Will” Frankie cuts him off, turning to look at him. “I’m fine, go get changed.”_

_“Frankie...” Will tries again._

_“Go.” Frankie insists, giving him a slight push towards the door. “Go get changed and grab your laptop so we can watch that stupid 14 40 movie you talked about the whole flight here.”_

_“13 going on 30” Will corrects her, a slight smile on his lips, eyes still full of worry._

_“That one too.” Frankie replies._

_“I’ll be right back.” Will insists on a sigh, pressing a too short kiss to her forehead and walking out the door with one last worried look._

_Frankie slouches and exhales deeply as soon as he’s gone. She feels like shit, so much so that she can feel wetness pooling in her eyes, but at least Jai’s the only one left to see her losing control._

_Her relief is short-lived as she hears Standish and Susan return to the room. Her shoulders tense and her stomach rolls, she knows she’s going to vomit and makes a move towards the toilet to do just that. There’s a commotion behind her and a door slams seconds before she feels Jai’s hands on her. One hand rubbing her back the other holding her hair as she makes her offering to the porcelain Gods._

_Five minutes and three offerings later Frankie is sitting on the counter beside the sink while Jai takes her temperature once more. He helped her change on unsteady legs into the clothes Standish retrieved and watched her swallow two aspirin. Then two more after she lost the first dose to the Spanish aqueducts. She’s finished the first bottle of water and Jai is handing her another before she’s even finished swallowing the last sip._

_“100.2” Still too high.” Jai mutters as he puts the thermometer down and turns on the faucet to dampen yet another cloth to press to her face._

_“Lower than before.” Frankie offers with a smile in an attempt to ward off the lecture she knows is coming._

_She fails._

_“105.9 is not an appropriate temperature to have Francesca.” Jai hisses at her, applying the now wet cloth to the back of her neck and holding it here while he has his say._

_She’s not really listening to his wrath. She knows there’s no real anger, only worry and slight fear. For a long time all they had was each other, so when one of them gets hurt or sick, well they don’t have what Susan would call a healthy reaction. But it works for them, Frankie’s not entirely sure what she’d do without the tradition._

_He’s still railing at her. Words like “stupid” and “plan” and “never listen” land in her ears as she tries to remember the last time she was patched up without a lecture. She can’t remember, nore does she care. She likes how Jai does it._

_She’ll never understand how he can be so angry with her but still so gentle at the same time. His voice harsh, his words biting but he’s hands as gentle as a mothers on a newborn. He’s an enigma, her Jai. She couldn’t possibly love him more._

_With a final huff of annoyance Jai goes silent and glares at her. She offers him a quick smile and gets one in return._

_“How do you feel?” He asks softly, lecture over, concern now on full display._

_“Like shit.” Frankie answers honestly. “My head hurts and I feel like jello.”_

_“You’re dehydrated and need some sleep.” Jai diagnoses and prescribes._

_“OK.” Frankie agrees, she really does just want to sleep._

_“I mean it Francesca, don’t you dare let Captain Care Bear climb on top of you tonight you need to rest.” Jai demands brandishing a finger at her._

_“Jai…” Frankie starts with a laugh._

_“I mean it I’ll stand outside your door, hell I’ll sleep next to you if I have to and make sure Agent Rainbows and Unicorns stays in his own government paid for room and leaves you alone.” Jai vows._

_“I haven’t slept with him.” Frankie makes the statement softly, causing Jai to shoot her a surprised look._

_“You’ve been officially together a while now.” Jai counters giving her a look of suspicion._

_“Three weeks today apparently. Or so he informed me this morning when he brought my coffee.” Frankie admits softly._

_Jai looks at her thoughtfully “He’s a gentleman, so I believe he’d keep his hands to himself if you asked, but I've seen you in action Francesca, you’re not exactly the Virgin Mary. Could probably give Mary Magdalene a run for her money.” There’s no judgement in his voice, he’s just speaking the truth._

_Frankie nods but says nothing._

_“Why not?” He asks after a moment of quiet._

_“Trying not to fuck it up.” Frankie offers in a small voice with an even smaller shrug._

_“You like him.” Jai accuses softly._

_“Yeah.” Frankie agrees in a whisper. She really does._

_Jai gives her an appraising look then removes the cloth he’s holding to her head and kisses her gently at her temple. “I'm proud of you.” He whispers when he leans back. “You deserve to be happy.”_

_Frankie feels a blush rise to her cheeks and knows it has nothing to do with her temperature. She’s never embarrassed around Jai, they’ve been through too much together. But this feels different somehow, she’s not embarrassed exactly, she's just a little shy about feeling happy for the first time in a long time._

_“Let’s get you into bed. Now that I know your virtue will be safe, I might even let the boy stay and hover over you so I can get some sleep of my own.” Jai teases, helping her off the counter and letting her lean on him a little more than she’d like as they make their way out of the bathroom._

_“I promise not to let him do too good of a job and show you up.” Frankie teases holding him a little tighter, her legs feeling as weak as a baby bird._

_“As if he could.” Jai snorts back._

_Everyone is still there when they enter the bedroom. Will pacing, Susan speaking to someone on the phone and Standish sitting uncharacteristically still on the bed._

_“Ok everyone out, show’s over it’s time for Frankie to get some sleep.” Jai announces helping Frankie to sit on the side of the bed._

_Frankie watches through already closing eyes as several things happen at once. Standish leaps from the bed as if afraid getting too close to Frankie might cause harm. Susan pulls the phone from her ear and hangs up on a squawking Ray, and Will sets a look of determination on his face that tells her he’s gearing up for a fight that he has no intention of losing._

_Oh this is going to be good she thinks, really hoping she doesn’t pass out before the entertainment portion of the night is over. Bossy Jai is always a good show, especially on the rare occasion that it’s not her being bossed around._

_“Jai.” Will starts._

_“Relax Captain Hovercraft. I’ll agree to let you play nurse maid for the night on two conditions.”_

_“Jai I’m not...”_

_“First” Jai interrupts Will’s refusal to leave. “You will call me if she gets worse or her fever begins to go up again.”_

_“And second?” Will asks, hands on his hips ready for battle. God he’s beautiful._

_“You keep your hands to yourself Will Chase. I will not have Francesca violated in her state.” Jai says firmly, his finger pointed directly at Will._

_“Jai...” Frankie whines. Then looks at Will and offers him a smirk. “You can violate me a little Whiskey, I won’t mind.”_

_“Y’all are nasty.” Standish complains at the same time Jai rounds on Frankie with a disappointed dad glare._

_“Frankie I would never…” Will begins but gets cut off again by Susan._

_“We all know that Will, she’s just messing with you to rile the boys up. It’s time we all leave and let the two of you rest.” Walking to the bed she leans down and kisses Frankie on the cheek. “Feel better pobrecita, call if you need anything and we’ll see you in the morning.”_

_“Night Frankie, don’t puke on Will.” Standish calls as Susan grabs his arm pulling him from the room._

_“Goodnight Francesca.” Jai says with a long meaningful look in her direction. “I’ll be bringing you eggs for breakfast in the morning.”_

_“Frankie doesn’t eat eggs.” Will offers._

_“She will tomorrow.” Jai says with a pointed look._

_“Yes Jai.” Frankie replies, far too tired to argue right now. She’ll figure out a way to get out of it in the morning._

_Will just looks back and forth between them in confusion before muttering “that’s not weird at all, nope not one little bit.”_

_With a wink only she sees, Jai turns and walks towards Susan and Standish waiting by the door._

_Frankie rolls on her side, closes her eyes and listens with a deepening smirk as Standish begins to pepper Jai with questions._

_“Jai how did you know what side of the bed Frankie’s pajamas would be on? O.M.G. were you booty buddies? Does Will know? Are you worried he’ll kill you for touching his girl? Oh are you plotting to kill him for stealing your girl with the wooing? Ouch, hey why’d you hit me?”_

_As Standish’s voice gets cut off by the closing door Frankie opens her eyes to see a very worried looking Will Chase staring back at her._

_Funny how she’s the sick one but she can’t help but reach for him to try to offer him comfort. “Come here.” She quietly requests trusting that he will even as she closes her eyes once again._

_She feels him settle onto the bed beside her and rolls herself tightly into his side. Head settling on his chest and one leg looping over his. His hand is swift to find its way to the back of her neck and begins a message that makes her momentarily forget about her headache and almost purr with pleasure._

_She wasn’t lying when she told Jai she hasn’t had sex with Will, something she plans to rectify as soon as she can feel her limbs again. But they have shared a bed more than once over the last three weeks, both finding excuses to encourage the other to spend the night with them. Both silently and consciously agreeing to keep a barrier of thin clothing between them when they do._

_Unconsciously though, their bodies have chosen a different path for them. Each time they’ve opened their eyes to a new day together, Will’s hand has managed to find its way under her shirt, fingers stroking at her scar. Frankie more often than not is pressed impossibly close to him, hand over his heart, face pressed into the delicious crease of his neck where she can breathe him in with each breath of her own, and having tangling her legs around his in such a way that it always takes them a minute to part._

_Frankie hopes they wake the same way tomorrow._

_“You scared me.” Will admits softly while pressing his lips to the still damp curls on her head._

_“I’m sorry.” Frankie says pressing herself closer, breathing him in and losing the battle with sleep._

_“Sleep pretty girl. I’ll take care of you.” Will promises, and with another kiss to her head Frankie does just that._

_***************_

_They’re up three times throughout the night. Each time Frankie graces the toilet with the dwindling contents of her stomach. Each time Will is right behind her rubbing her back, wiping her brow, handing her a toothbrush and taking her back to bed._

_She hates this. She likes him._

_She can see from the exhaustion on his face that Will slept little if at all during the night. Each time she woke he was watching her, looking for any kind of distress, ready to fill any need. She usually hates when people watch her sleep, but finds she doesn’t mind so much with him. Still it leaves her a little uneasy and feeling guilty that he would sacrifice his need to sleep for her. They’d have to talk about that later._

_Jai takes pity on her and forgoes the eggs in favour of some dry toast when he comes to check on her in the morning. She feels like she’s gone 20 rounds with Muhammad Ali, but her fever has lowered a little more and she’s been able to keep the water, toast and newest dose of asprain down so Jai has declared her fit for travel and they make their way to the jet waiting for them._

_Frankie doesn’t remember much of the trip home. She spends most of it sleeping under a thin blanket on the plane's couch, her head resting in Will’s lap, as he strokes her hair with one hand and holds her in place at her hip with the other. From what she can recall Standish makes only one lewd comment about the proximity of her face to Will’s “joystick” as he’s termed it today before she mumbles a “fuck off” rolling over and pressing her face securely into Will’s stomach trying to block out the light, her arm reaching around his waist to hold herself closer._

_He wakes her a few times to get her to drink some water, take some pills and at one point to make her eat a popsicle though she doesn’t have the brain capacity to figure out where or how he got it over the middle of the Atlantic._

_Seven hours later they're home and even after sleeping for the better part of 20 hours, Frankie’s still miserable when the plane touches down. By the time Will is opening her apartment door she’s more than ready to admit defeat and surrender to herself to the couch until the devil has decided she’s suffered enough. Frankie does not handle being sick well._

_“Shower” Frankie mutters to Will and walks directly to her bedroom, pulling off her clothes on the way. She’s not sure if she expected him to follow her, wait for her, or go home, all she knows is that she’s sweated through the night with fever and her skin itches and that needs to stop._

_15 minutes later she emerges from her bathroom, towel wrapped around her body and feeling almost human again to find Will sitting on her bed staring at the doorway she just walked through._

_She watches his eyes widen with guilt, as he stands up quickly and words begin to flumble from his mouth in a rush. “I wasn’t trying to watch you, I swear, I didn’t look, not once. I just wanted to be close in case you needed me. Not that I think you would need me to shower, you are more than capable of doing that on your own I know. Just maybe if you got dizzy and lost your balance or had to throw up or got soap in your eyes…” He trails off looking lost, a pink tinge highlighting his cheeks._

_“Soap in my eyes? Really Whiskey.” Frankie mutters with a smirk still standing in the doorway._

_“It can be very painful.” Will insists with a nod of his head._

_“Well thank goddess you were here then.”_

_They stare at each other for a moment. Frankie enjoying watching him squirm as he clearly feels torn between giving her privacy and making sure she’s ok. She’s tired so she’s going to let him off the hook but she’s filing this exchange away for later, there’s no way she’s not bringing this up again._

_“Why don’t you go see what’s in the fridge snack wise while I get dressed?” She offers, assigning him a job so he can feel useful. Will loves to feel useful._

_“Yeah, ok.” He accepts, looking grateful and moving to the door before looking back at her. “You sure you’re good?”_

_“I know I’m good Whiskey.” Frankie says in a low and suggestive tone, no harm in playing with him a little she decides._

_Frankie uses every bit of effort she has not to smile as she watches a deep red race to Will’s face at her words, and the double meaning behind them._

_She fails miserably and feels a wide grin stretch across her face._

_Will takes in her smile, then straightens his shoulders even more if possible and glares at her. “Mean” is his final assessment, as he walks out the door._

_“You love it.” Frankie calls at his back, but misses his mumbled reply as he gets further away. Chuckling to herself she changes into a pair of cotton shorts and a t-shirt, thinking about how much she loves to tease him before making her way to the livingroom to join her favourite victim on the couch._

_“That’s my shirt.” Will makes the statement as soon as she enters the room._

_Frankie looks down and takes in the letters across her chest with a shrug and no shame, moving to sit beside him and pulling her knees to her chest._

_“You stole my shirt.” Will accuses._

_“Top of my class at thievery. You really should have checked my resume better Whiskey, shame on you.”_

_Will narrows his eyes and opens his mouth to offer his rebuttal but she beats him to it._

_“I’m not giving it back so you can forget it. I like it. It’s soft. Kinda like the agency that issued it.” She finishes with a smirk in his direction._

_Will huffs at her but makes no comment as he wraps his arm around her and pulls her into his side._

_Frankie leans in closer, settling in to watch whatever cheesy romance movie he’s decided to assault her with today. She’s pleasantly surprised when he’s chosen Die Hard, a movie he hates and she loves. Yeah she likes him. A lot._

_“Looks better on you anyway.” Will whispers into her temple a few minutes later._

_“You should see how good it looks on my bedroom floor.” Frankie retorts, she really can’t help herself._

_She can feel Will suck in a breath, then go still beside her, and laughs softly at his sudden inability to form words, his mouth opening and closing like a fish as he looks at her. He’s so damn cute in that moment, it's impossible to stop herself from reaching around his neck and pulling his lips to hers for a kiss that’s soft and full of promise._

_“Sass is back. You must be feeling better.” Will manages when they part, his thumb running over her cheek._

_“A little.” Frankie hums out her agreement. “I had a really good nurse.”_

_“Yeah?” Will asks with a smile._

_“Yeah. Cute too.”_

_“Oh really?”_

_“Yeah. Kinda hoping he’ll play doctor with me one day soon.” She says with a raised eyebrow and suggestive smile._

_Will growls deep in his chest and pulls her closer while she laughs. “You’re going to be the death of me Francesca.” He mutters into her hair, kissing her curls softly._

_“You love it.” She whispers back, settling her head back onto his chest once more. Eyes beginning to droop._

_“Nothing better.” Comes Will’s soft reply. It’s the last thing Frankie hears from him before she falls asleep to the muffled sounds of the movie and Will’s heartbeat steady in her ear._

_She forgot to remind him to sleep too._

**********************

“How is he?” Frankie asks softly as Nurse Maggie joins her in Will’s darkened room a little after midnight on the forth night of her vigil. 

“All of his test results look promising.” She responds just as softly. 

“He always brags about how well he does on tests.” Frankie comments, eyes never leaving Will’s face. “His eyes are fluttering a lot tonight. He’s not in pain is he?” 

“No, the doctor gave him the medicine to start waking him up now that the swelling has gone down and he’s breathing on his own.” Maggie says, then startles a little when Frankie shoots her feet, and drops Will’s hand like it’s burned her. 

“He’s awake?” Frankie asks, terror evident on her face. 

Maggie’s eyebrows raise in question as she stares at Frankie clearly confused by her reaction. 

“No, not really. It’s a slow process. Right now he’s just borderline conscious, more like a dream of being awake. He’s not conscious enough to know what’s happening around him. Not enough to know who’s here with him.” 

When Frankie just continues to look warily at Will, Maggie begins speaking again.

“He was awake for a few minutes before you got here tonight. Happens sometimes. Some people have a burst of consciousness when the new drug hits their system. Doesn’t last more than a few moments but it’s enough to show the doctors a level of brain activity that can help determine the course of treatment and offer clues to potential outcomes. The fact that he responded so well is great, but he won’t truly wake up for another day or so, maybe longer...” Maggie trails off still confused by Frankie’s lack of emotion. 

“It’s a good sign Cassie, it means he’s going to be ok.” Maggie tries again. 

“Cassie?” Frankie’s eyes move to the nurse with confusion.

“You’re not Cassie?” Maggie asks, suddenly looking worried. 

“No.”

Maggie quickly moves her eyes away, an embarrassed blush lifting to her face, deep enough to be seen even with the dim lighting. “He kept saying Cassie. Calling for a Cass. I thought maybe that was you. I’m sorry.” Her eyes returning to Frankie’s once more offering a pitying look that Frankie can only assume is because she thinks it wasn’t her he was looking for. 

Frankie knows better and closes her eyes against the flood of emotion threatening to pool there and leak down her cheeks. 

“Sassy. He calls me Sassy, Sass.” Frankie whispers, losing the battle to a single tear.

“Sassy?” Maggie questions back, looking more relaxed than she did just seconds ago. 

Frankie snorts softly. “I know it’s the worst...he loves it. I loved it.” She says softly, talking more to Will than Maggie as she moves to take his hand in hers once again. 

Frankie doesn’t know why she told Maggie that. She doesn’t know why she’s talking to her at all. Francesca Trowbridge does not talk to be people, she doesn’t play nice, and she certainly doesn’t share her feelings. Especially with people she doesn't know. But something about Maggie makes it feel ok. Maybe it's because she’s taking care of Will, or because she’s keeping Frankie’s visits a secret. Maybe it’s just the comfort of strangers theory Will once told her about that she promptly called stupid. More than anything though Frankie thinks it because she’s vulnerable and scared and Maggie can sense that even while Frankie does her best to hide it. 

_Yeah she really needs to work for the CIA._ Frankie thinks again. _A team of Maggie and Susan would be terrifying._ The thought makes her smile.

“You never answered me. He your forever man?” Maggie asks, eyes locked on their joined hands. 

“I never gave him the chance to be.” Frankie confesses without thinking. 

_Fuck, Maggie could give Susan a run for her money._

“Maybe you can give him that chance now.” Maggie suggests softly, gathering her things to move on to her next patient. 

“I don’t think so. I messed it up.” Frankie offers up with a small shrug. 

“As long as you’re both still breathing there's a chance.” Maggie says almost challengingly. 

“Yeah maybe.” Frankie conseeds, mostly to appease the nurse.

With a sigh clearly meant to convey that she doesn’t believe her Maggie reaches for the door to make her exit when Frankie stops her with a plea. 

“When he wakes up please don’t tell him I’m here. He wouldn’t… Please just don’t tell him.” 

Maggie looks over her shoulder hand on the knob. “Couldn’t if I wanted to, don’t know who you are.”

Frankie opens her mouth to give her name but stops when Maggie raises her hand in protest. 

“Don’t. Better if I don’t know. Plausible deniability and all that.” Maggie conspires, and throws Frankie a wink filled with humour and secrets as she makes her exit. _Seriously, the CIA needs to know about her._

Frankie turns back to Will and eyes him suspiciously for a moment. Looking for any trace of wakefulness before lowering herself into the chair trying to find a comfortable position. She’s not going anywhere for the next few hours. This could very well be her last night with him and she’s not willing to give up a single moment. 

***********************

Frankie is approaching the hospital on the fifth night, coffee in one hand and bagel thrust upon her by Jai in the other. She’s almost to the door when she gets the text from Maggie.

**He’s awake.**


	7. Chapter 7

_Beep, Beep, Beep._ Will can hear a constant beeping of an alarm clock pulling him from sleep and tearing him from a dream he already forgets.

“Sass turn it off.” He says, or tries to say anyway. His mouth to dry, his voice too low and scratchy even in his own ears to be understood.

“Sass.” He tries again a little louder, hearing the beeping speed up and feeling more than seeing a light snap on in the room. 

“Agent Chase? Agent Chase I need you to open your eyes.” A voice calls to him, hands on him suddenly holding him down when he tries to sit up.

“What? Where? Who? Sass…” Will forcing his eyes open then immediately squeezing them shut again when the light feels like ice picks being thrust into his brain. Trying to move was no less painful, confusion and terror set in quickly, he needs to move, needs to find her. 

“Agent Chase, please stop. You’re going to hurt yourself further. Maggie get the restraints.” A woman’s voice above him snaps. “Agent Chase, my name is Dr. Beth Peers, you’ve been in an accident, you’re at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York. I need you to stop moving, you're going to pull your IV out.”

Will freezes. Hospital. New York. Accident. Frankie. Where’s Frankie?

“Partner?” Will asks. He’s trying to think, trying to focus, why can’t he remember.

“You were brought in with another man six nights ago, got hit by a drunk driver. You got the worst of it. Pushed your partner out of the way is my understanding. He walked away with just some minor injuries.” Doctor Peers explains still holding him down. 

“Dr. Peers?” Another voice questions. “Do you still want the restraints?” 

“Am I going to need them Agent Chase?”

Will doesn’t hear her. He's trying to piece it all together, eyes still firmly shut hiding from the pain caused by the light. Jai, he remembers Jai. Jai telling him to get his shit together, Jai walking across the road, seeing the car lights come at him, wondering if he would ever get to hold Frankie again and prove he could fix whatever it was he broke, then nothing.

“Agent Chase” The doctor pulls him from his search for answers. "Do I need the restraints?"

“No.” Will finally answers.

“Well ok then. Put them down and grab him some ice chips would you Maggie, his throat must be sore.” Dr. Peers says in a much softer and more soothing voice than she had just a few moments ago, traces of an Irish accent slipping into her instructions. 

“I know it hurts hun, but I need you to open those pretty eyes of yours just one more time so I can take a peek ok.”

Will does so slowly and painfully, finding himself looking at a woman old enough to be his mum with dark enough skin to make him confused about the accent he swore he heard. 

The confusion is clearly evident on his face because she smiles at him and turns to the younger woman in the room with a look of amusement. “Never gets old. I love when they wake up and see my black ass talking like a leprechaun.”

“Sorry...I wasn’t...I didn’t...I’m not…” Will stammers out, brain still fuzzy but working well enough to know his mother would be appalled to hear of him offending his doctor. 

“It’s ok Agent Chase, no harm done” She laughs in a way that assures Will that she truly isn’t offended in the least and goes about making notes in his chart. “My mother is Irish to the core, red hair and as pale as they come. My father, an African American Marine was stationed overseas when he found her and stole her heart, and a little something more.” She adds with a wiggle of her eyebrows. “Five months later they were married and 4 months after that I was born, a true Black Irish.” She finishes with a smile thickening her accent just a little to make her point. 

She then lifts her hand and waves her pen at him still smiling. “As long as you pretend not to do the math on that one, I’ll forgive your assumption that I should have red hair and be hiding a pot of gold. I do love a good pint of Guinness though I’ll give you that one.” 

“Deal” Will croaks. He's not usually a fan of doctors and their constant desire to stab him with needles, but he likes this one already. 

“Excellent, now I just need to ask you some questions ok?” 

“Yes.”

“What’s my name?” She requests, making notes on his chart as she goes. 

“Peers?”

“What month is it?” 

“March?” 

“April now, but I’m going to give it to you since you’ve been napping for a wee bit. Now focus. You came in on a Friday. You’ve been here for six nights. What day is it today?” 

“Wednesday?” Will guesses after a moment, brain on fire. 

“Excellent Agent Chase last question. What colour did I say my mother’s eyes were?

Will searches his memory but comes up empty. His mind feels muddled and he can’t focus. “I don’t know, did you tell me that?”

“No I didn’t.” She admits with a smirk making a final note in his chart and returning it to its place. “Just making sure you weren’t just guessing the answers. That would be cheating.” Dr. Peers smiles and pats his hand.

“I don’t cheat.” Will insists. 

“Good to know. Now Maggie here has brought you some ice chips, she’s going to feed it to you like a baby for a few minutes, don’t worry no one’s going to take your man card away, but we do need to get it into your mouth and not onto your chest which is where it will end up if you try to do it yourself right now. I’ve given you some meds that are going to knock you out fairly soon which will help you sleep through the night and we can talk again in the morning.” Dr. Peers continues as she checks his vitals and pokes at the bandage on his head. 

“What’s wrong with me?” Will asks around a mouthful of ice, already beginning to feel the effects of the medicine. 

“Did you not hear me say you got hit by a car?” The doctor deadpans in a way that makes Will long for Frankie.

_Frankie. Is she here? Does she know?_

The doctor is talking to him, something about a second surgery and recovery but Will is not listening anymore, his mind too full of Frankie and getting fuzzy from the whatever they’ve given him for the pain and to sleep.

“I can see you’re struggling to process and stay awake so I’ll come back in the morning when you’re a little more lucid. Sleep well Agent Chase, you need all the rest you can get to recover.”

“Will” he mumbles.

The doctor smiles at him. “Goodnight, Will.” 

Will watches her leave the room through hooded eyes, grateful when she flips the light off on her way out. The nurse is still there however, hovering over him and spooning another mouthful of ice chips into his mouth.

Maggie, he remembers. She’s young and pretty, blonde with eyes he can’t make out in the dark but he’s betting on blue. She’s exactly the type of girl Will would have chased after once upon a time. Not anymore though, now he only has eyes for a snarky brunette, with eyes the colour of emeralds and a tongue as sharp as the knife she keeps in her boot. 

“Has anyone been here to see me?” Will tries to ask urgently, but even he can hear his voice is weak and lazy.

“I’m only here at night but the day nurse mentioned your parents and a woman named Susan who got special permission. They won’t let anyone other than family see you right now.” Maggie says quietly averting her eyes. 

“A woman? A woman...chocolate hair...pretty eyes….killer smile...” Will tries to ask, needing the answer but losing his battle with the drugs too fast to keep his eyes open long enough to see Maggie smile.

“Sleep Will, you’ll feel better in the morning.” Maggie says moving away from his side and walking towards the door.

“Wait...need to know if Sass…” Will trails off, the drugs winning the war.

  
  


******************

Will feels like he’s floating when he wakes once again. But is he really awake? He can’t say for sure, he thinks his eyes are open but it’s almost too dark to tell the difference. His body feels so heavy he can’t move, not that he wants to, he's too busy floating. 

He likes this dream, he’s floating and it feels like Frankie is all around him. His nose tickles with the scent of her vanilla perfume and the green apple shampoo he still has sitting in his shower. He can see her outline in the darkness, eyes shining as she gazes out the window at the night sky. He can feel her too, feel her hand in his holding tightly, thumb rubbing across his skin. But all of that is second to the sound of her breathing his name. The name the government gave him, the name men called him at war, the same name she whispers like a prayer when she loves him. _Whiskey._

He’s dreaming and floating and oh so relaxed. He can feel the smile on his lips when he whispers her name before falling into a memory and letting it soothe away all his pain. 

*********************

_June 13th. That’s the date that Francesca Trowbridge put an end to the wooing efforts of William Chase. It’s a day that he’ll will always remember as being one of his best of his life._

_There was nothing special about the day. Pretty boring for a spy really. Post mission paperwork, requisition forms, training, and a quick trip to the gun range, absolutely nothing to make the day special. At least not yet._

_Will is standing behind the bar organizing the glasses in what he’s determined will be a much more eye pleasing and efficient way when he hears the beginnings of a much anticipated argument coming from the back room._

_Peering at the clock he notes the time. Almost 5pm, they’ve been playing pool for over an hour and Frankie is just now starting to yell at Standish._

_Someone’s feeling very patient today. Will thinks with a smirk as he continues to line up the shot glasses, while listening to Frankie torment the younger agent. Must be in a good mood. His smile deepening as he wonders if it has anything to do with the frozen lemonade he bought her on his way back from the gun range._

_“Wooing.” Is all he says when he hands it to her._

_“You need a hobby.” She retorts taking a sip to hide her smile._

_“Yeah, I like this one.” He smiles back. “It’s working.”_

_“Keep dreaming.” Frankie counters with an eye roll as she turns and struts towards the back of the bar swaying her hips just a little more than normal to drive Will mad._

_“Oh I will.” He hollers at her with a laugh as she gets further away. Then whispers to himself. “Every night, Francesca.”_

_He’s been “wooing” her for almost six weeks now, and she’s taking the entire thing way better than he expected if he’s honest._

_That day in Prague he wanted nothing more than to pull her close and kiss her senseless. He wanted to kiss her until he couldn’t breathe and claim her as his own right then and there._

_He was going to, he really was but as he pulled her close and the scent of vanilla and coffee and everything that’s just Frankie filled his nose he paused._

_He thought about their decision not to do this very thing months earlier, before Emma, before Ollerman’s escape, before she pulled him from that rabbit hole. He remembers the promise they made not to ruin their partnership with a bottle of tequila and a torrid affair, and he knew he couldn’t have what he wanted._

_Not yet anyway._

_Will wanted Frankie more than he’s ever wanted anything in his entire life. More than Gigi, or Emma or Jessica McBride the prettiest girl at his preschool. He wanted her so bad it hurt. So much that having her standing in the circle of his arms was making him feel dizzy and his knees shake._

_But he also knew having her walk away from him after would be more than he could bear._

_She needed to be ready, to trust him enough to try. She needed to want him the same way he wanted her. The fact that she’s allowing him to stand so close and breathe her air gives him hope that maybe a little part of her does._

_So he takes his chance and doesn’t press his lips to hers, moving at the last second to whisper his promise not to kiss her in her ear instead, and it almost killed him._

_He half expected her to laugh at his efforts and shoot him down after his promise to woo her. But she surprised him then and continues to do so daily._

_Not to say she’s making it easy for him. She wouldn’t be the Frankie he’s falling deeper in love with everyday if she did. But she’s letting him do it, and if he’s not mistaken she’s enjoying his efforts._

_*******************_

_As one of his first efforts in wooing, he took her to one of the last NHL games of the season while they were on an overnight mission to Toronto. “Nowhere better than Canada to watch hockey.” He explained as she grumbled about the cold arena into the beer he bought her. But her eyes were full of light and she excitedly grabbed his arm when she watched a fight break out on the ice, so he counts it as a win._

_*******************_

_Some action movie premiered a few weeks after they returned from Prague. It offered enough violence to keep Frankie entertained, enough of a love story to appease Will and so much over the top weaponry and spy craft they drove the other movie goers around them crazy with their banter and mockery of the film._

_He doesn’t remember the plot of the movie or who was in it, but what he does remember is the epic eye roll Frankie offered along with her trademark smirk when Will joined her at their seats. She refused to wait in the concession line with him, so she had no say in the matter when he arrived with a bucket of popcorn and a large coke. Two straws._

_“It's romantic.” Will defends before Frankie can even open her mouth._

_“OK.” Frankie says her smirk deepening into a smile._

_“Sarah Graham appreciated it. Said it was the most romantic thing ever.” Will mutters sitting down and passing her the popcorn._

_“And how old were you when Sarah made this proclamation?” Frankie questions with a laugh in her voice._

_“14. But she was 16 and a cheerleader AND had previously dated the high school quarterback so she knew romance.” Will states his evidence with conviction._

_“16 year old cheerleader huh? What was she doing with a 14 year old Will Chase? I’ve seen the pictures Whiskey, you hadn’t hit puberty by then.” Frankie teases popping a few kernels into her mouth._

_With a look of absolute seriousness Will turns to her as the theatre lights dim and whispers. “I hit her with the charm virus, it’s impossible to resist.”_

_Frankie just stares. Then smiles and shakes her head at him. “So damn cocky.”_

_“You pronounced charming wrong again Frankie, you really should work on that.” Will says with a smile taking a sip of the coke before handing it to her and looking at the screen._

_Taking a sip through the remaining straw Frankie surprises Will by leaning close and sharing a memory. “Henry Williams used the two straw thing too when he took me to see Titanic in middle school.”_

_“Did it work?” Will whispers turning and finding her face only a few inches from his. Helpless against his eyes dropping to her now very close lips._

_“Yes. Until he jumped when the boat hit the ice and he spilled root beer all over the new dress my mum had bought me for the outing my father refused to let me call a date.” Frankie recalls a small smile gracing her lips._

_Will smiles back and can’t resist teasing her. “Awww poor little Frankie’s first taste of romance stolen by a liquid fumble.”_

_Frankie’s smile gets wider and a look that Will can’t quite decipher in the dim light glows bright in her eyes “Oh don’t you worry little Frankie was just fine. Henry on the other hand went home with a bloody nose after he tried to help me clean up by continuously pressing napkins to my chest and rubbing them around.”_

_The smile disappears from Will’s face. “We don’t like Henry.” He declares leaving no room for argument._

_“No we don’t.” Frankie agrees, then smiles at Will. “I hope you do better.”_

_“Oh I will.” He promises._

_*******************_

_He brings her tea while they sit in a car watching the home of a suspected drug dealer on a cold night in Belfast. She drinks tea with brandy when she’s cold, he noticed. She calls him a stalker but smiles as she lifts the cup to her lips._

_*******************_

_In Mexico he greets her in the hotel lobby with a gentle “Good morning, pretty girl” and an iced coffee before they leave to track down a lead. “I had them make it with chocolate milk, thought you might like it. ” He says shyly when she takes a sip and looks at him, questions in her eyes. Her smile tells him she does even while her voice tells him not to mess with her caffeine._

_*******************_

_Frankie lets him take her for long walks around the city on their days off and sometimes after work._

_Once last week he was even brave enough to reach out and hold her hand as he walked her home. “Walking through the park can be dangerous at night”, he reasoned with her. “As my partner it’s your job to protect me and keep me safe.” Frankie rolled her eyes, called him a big baby and muttered something along the lines of breaking his hand but she tangled her fingers through his._

_She’s held his hand every night since, “so you don’t get scared” she sasses him every time. He loves it._

_*******************_

_He’s done a lot of wooing over the last six weeks, a single tulip he pushed behind her ear in Holland, a bar of chocolate slipped into her pocket in Belgium, coffee and breakfast brought to her every morning no matter where they are in the world, even a trip to the local animal shelter in Morocco so Frankie could play with the kittens after she let it slip that she always wanted one but would feel too guilty about leaving it alone all the the time. He was pretty proud of his wooing achievements thus far, but yesterday morning might just have been his proudest wooing moment yet._

_She scolded him the entire time but nothing was going to stop him from his mission. It’s dangerous and reckless and beyond dumb, or so she tells him repeatedly even as she follows him blindly, her fingers tangled with his as he leads her down a narrow path to the destination he has in mind._

_The plane is waiting for them on the tarmac of an abandoned airstrip three miles away with an anxious team onboard and ready to go. They’re not welcome or wanted in Cuba and he knows every minute they’re on the ground they’re risking a nightmare of international proportions._

_Still it’s worth it when he hears Frankie’s breath catch in the middle of her tirade about his sudden need to detour and go off script, and how she’s supposed to be the unhinged one in this partnership, as they clear the buildings and she takes in the scene before her._

_The sun is just about to rise over the ocean. The sky filling with the first streaks of reds and oranges that will soon melt together to form the sun and light the sky for another day._

_They take a few more steps onto the beach before Will moves himself behind Frankie and wraps his arms around her, as they watch the sky turn from black to blue._

_Frankie, now quiet lifts her hands to rest on Will’s around her waist and leans back ever so slightly, head resting on his shoulder as she does. Will feels her sigh and holds her just a little tighter._

_Five minutes pass and the sun is almost fully above the water line, the sky changing to a brilliant blue, dolphins playing in the surf, gulls crying overhead._

_“We should go.” Will whispers in her ear, not wanting to leave this spot with her but knowing they have to. They’ve stayed longer than Will promised Susan they would._

_“One more minute.” Frankie requests softly, pulling his arms tighter around her and sinking deeper into his hold. “Please.”_

_“One more minute.” He’s powerless to resist._

_They barely make it back in time. Running across the tarmac bullets hitting the ground at their feet as they do. They’re in their seats across from each other mere seconds before the plane is hurtling them into the sky. Both breathing heavy and struggling with seatbelts._

_“I sure as hell hope it was worth it.” Jai lectures from his seat near the front of the plane._

_Will’s eyes meet Frankie’s and they both smile and confirm together “It was.”_

_*******************_

_Will can hear Frankie and Standish getting closer and if he’s not mistaken he’s going to have to jump in pretty soon before Frankie smacks the young hacker._

_“You cheated!” Standish accuses._

_“I did not, you just suck at pool.” Frankie retorts giving Will a sideways look as she enters the room that’s full of both mischief and glee._

_“I don’t suck you cheated!” Standish exclaims outrage clear in his high pitched accusation._

_“How did I cheat? I hit the balls they went into the holes, how is that cheating?” Frankie asks, raising her hands and voice in question._

_“Oh no don’t play innocent with me. You know what you did.” Standish says brandish a finger in Frankie’s face._

_That’s a mistake. Will sighs, yeah he’s going to have to pull her off him any second now._

_Frankie lets a slow smile cross her face as she raises both hands to her hips. “What exactly did I do Standish?” she asks in a calm voice...far to calm for Will to believe anything good is going to come from it._

_“You seduced me!” Standish shouts then quickly lowers his voice and continues to whisper yell, while sliding a sideways look at Will. “And with your boy toy standing in the next room. Shameful Frankie, just shameful.” He finishes with a sad shake of his head._

_Multiple questions begin floating around in Will’s head, but he doesn't grasp any of them long enough to form it into words before Frankie, still looking far to calm for his liking, opens her mouth once again._

_“How exactly did I seduce you Standish? I didn’t even touch you.” Frankie asks, looking pleased with herself._

_“You took your clothes off!” Standish is yelling once again._

_Now Will is really confused. Frankie is standing in front of him fully clothed. Sandals, jeans and a tank top all firmly in place and they don’t look like they were hastily put on just seconds before walking into the room. Sure, not exactly government issued spy gear or office attire but they’re not on a mission, they don’t work in an office and all the important bits are covered so Will is at a loss._

_But Frankie is smirking again so he’s immediately suspicious._

_Standish rounds on Will, eyes wide and full of injustice “You need to step up and control your woman Will she’s...well she’s out of control. She took her shirt off when I was about to take a shot to distract me so she could win...SHE TOOK HER SHIRT OFF WILL!” He finishes on a strangled breath, eyes bulging from this head._

_Frankie’s eyes narrow, probably at the idea of Will being told to control her. Or Standish deciding she belongs to Will before she’s made the decision herself, either way this isn’t going to end well._

_But Standish isn’t done yet and he seems not to notice how close to death he is as he turns his back on Frankie and sends Will a pleading look. “She took it off Will, she took it right off, like in a sex way. She tried to sex me up!”_

_“Will, I think you need to have the talk with your kid, he’s confused about sex.” Frankie is smirking once again and speaking in a sing-song voice to Will, that does nothing to calm Standish who is still trying to catch his breath._

_Standish rounds on Frankie outrage all over his face. “I know what sex is!”_

_“What is it?” Frankie asks innocently._

_“It's…” Standish starts then stops. Maybe because of the challenging look on Frankie’s face or because he is clearly lost as to what to say, either way he finishes pathetically with “Something that should not be talked about in front of a lady.”_

_Frankie snorts and rolls her eyes with such force that Will is fearful for a moment they might fall out of her head, before heaving out an exasperated groan._

_“If you missed your shot because you were too busy drooling while watching me take off my sweater, my sweater that was on over this shirt, that’s not my fault.” Frankie says absolving herself of any guilt while returning one hand to her now cocked out hip the other pulling a little at the hem of her top, pushing her breasts forward and dropping her voice to a sultry husk. “I can’t help it if you can’t control your balls around a woman.”_

_Frankie is so damn good at riling Standish up that Will almost feels sorry for him. Almost, they’ll discuss him lusting in Frankie’s direction later._

_Right after he steadies his heart rate, raised by her little show._

_As expected Standish’s eyes drop to Frankie’s breasts for a second before he slaps his hand over his eyes, and sucks in a strangled gasp. He might have been ok if he just kept his mouth shut and let Frankie have her fun but in true Standish fashion he stuffs his foot as far and as fast as he can into his mouth. “Will you better get a handle on your girl or I’m going to have to…”_

_“You’re going to have to what, Standish?” Frankie interrupts._

_Something in her tone must have caused Standish to change course suddenly because his hands quickly drop to his sides and he shoots her the most innocent of smiles and says “Tell you you’re a very pretty lady that won at pool fair and square and who I now owe $20?”_

_It comes out as more of a question than anything else and finishes almost on a whine as Standish winces and turns his body slightly as though bracing for a punch._

_Shooting a quick wink at Will, Frankie holds out her hand towards Standish. “Pay up nerd.”_

_Standish quickly pulls the money out of his pocket and hands it over to Frankie, then turns to glare at Will. “Some help you are.” He growls. “You always take her side. This wooing thing really isn’t working for me.”_

_“It’s working for me.” Frankie says winking again at Will, and causing his face to light up like a kid on Christmas, much to Standish’s horror._

_“I think I’m going to use my winnings to buy dinner. I’ve been wanting to try that cauliflower pizza they keep advertising.”_

_Will is pretty sure they can hear Standish’s gasp of horror in Canada. “Have you no shame woman! First using your…” He gestures at her body but uses no words to get his point across. “And now you disrespect pizza like that? Shame!”_

_“With vegan cheese.” Frankie continues her torment. She really does enjoy it. Will gets it. It’s how she shows Standish she loves him. Standish just hasn’t figured that out yet, but when he does he’s going to be over the moon._

_“Will!” Standish starts again like a child itching to report a sibling's misbehaviour, before Frankie cuts him off._

_“Will always take my side, remember. Him being...what did you call him again, my boy toy?” Will’s eyes narrow at her, he’s not sure he likes that moniker, but then again she’s claiming him and he really likes that._

_“I remember.” Standish says turning his head and giving Will a disappointed look while shaking his head. “And I don’t like it, nope I don’t like it not one little bit. You’re our leader Will.”_

_“Co-leader.” Frankie inserts._

_“You really shouldn’t have favourites…” Standish accuses._

_“I’ve said nothing, I’ve literally said nothing since the two of you walked into the room, not a thing!” Will defends finally able to get a word in._

_Standish offers nothing more than a less than dignified huff before walking swiftly towards the back of the bar. Calling as he goes. “I’m going to tell Jai on you Frankie, he’ll take my side, he knows all about your wicked ways.”_

_“Who do you think taught me?” Frankie calls back as she makes her way to sit in front of Will at the bar._

_“You enjoyed that didn’t you?” Will questions with a laugh, once they’re alone having fully appreciated the show._

_Frankie just smiles in response and offers a simple “No comment.”_

_“So, boy toy huh?” Will asks, leaning closer with a smile on his lips._

_Frankie smiles “I do enjoy toying with you, and I’m pretty sure you’re a boy.” Then leans closer, tilts her head to the side and drops her voice to a tone that raises the hair on the back of Will's neck. “Might have to double check one of these days though. Just to be 100% certain you understand.”_

_“It would be irresponsible of you not too really.” Will manages throat feeling suddenly dry._

_“We both know I’m never irresponsible.” Frankie whispers, then bites down on her bottom lip._

_“Never.” Will agrees, eyes zeroing on her mouth, pants feeling suspiciously tighter than they did a few minutes ago._

_They stare at each other for a few seconds both daring the other to make the final move before Will pulls back hanging his head and expelling a deep breath._

_“Damn you’re good.”_

_“I know.” Frankie laughs out._

_They smile at each other for a moment both just enjoying the others company free from the prying eyes of those who they know have placed bets on how, if and when the wooing will change to something more or just fade away._

_“You want some wine? I picked up a bottle of that Cupcake stuff while I was out.” Will offers already reaching for two glasses._

_“You don’t like that wine.” Frankie responds with a slightly confused look on her face._

_“Yeah but you do.” is Will’s simple response._

_When Frankie doesn’t say anything, Will raises his eyes and looks at her. She’s looking at him in a way that he can’t quite interpret, then grabs the glass of whiskey he was nursing before she walked into the room and shoots it down._

_“Dinner.” is all she says when she returns the glass to the bar._

_“OK. But not that gross pizza you were talking about please. I don’t think I could even pretend to like it.” Will begs. He’s not above begging when it comes to pizza._

_She looks at him appraisingly again then says softly. “No, I’ve got something different in mind.”_

************************

“Sass...” She hears him whisper and freezes, carefully looking at this face. He’s showing no signs of being awake but she can’t be too careful. She was stupid to stay this long, it’s too close to when the drugs will be wearing off and he’ll be able to focus enough to know she’s here. 

She’s got to get out. Now. 

Frankie slowly untangles her hand from his hand and leaves it resting on his chest. Standing, she looks him over once more. He’ll be ok now she decides. He’s out of danger, on the road to recovery. There’s no need to be here anymore. She can go. Leave. Run away. Never see him again. 

There’s a pain in Frankie’s chest so deep and encompassing that she almost can’t breathe. _Never see him again._

Looking at him, watching him sleep, being so close. Frankie’s suddenly not sure if she’s strong enough to do it again. To leave him again. But she’s 100% certain she can’t stay. 

“I don’t know what to do Whiskey.” She whispers feeling more lost than she’s ever felt in her whole life. 


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all so much for reading. I'm glad you liked the wooing efforts of Will, but he's not done yet! 
> 
> There's a few bits I'm not quite sure of in this chapter so if you don't like it or do please let me know so I can make changes to future chapters. 
> 
> Stay safe, stay healthy and for the love of God go read Inferno by FieryTribune if you're not already it's the only keeping me sane while locked in the house...no seriously why are you still here go read it!

There are 64 tiles on the ceiling of Will’s hospital room. He knows because he’s counted them. 157 times. The TV only gets four channels and only the Weather Channel and PBS are in English. He can speak Spanish and French, but can’t focus or muster up enough interest to really follow along with the shows on the other two. There’s a DVD player attached to the TV and a stack of discs his mother brought him on the small dresser. But he’s not intrigued. He’s not interested in the books Susan brought, the comics from Ray and certainly not the dirty magazines Standish smuggled into the room either. He just wants to leave. Get out of this bed and go find her. 

The doctor woke him up six days ago and since then it’s been a constant cycle of pain meds, physio, tests, short walks in the hall and sleep. Wash, rinse, repeat. Every day. It’s exhausting. 

They haven’t moved him from his room on the ICU floor, Dr. Peers insisted on keeping him. Maggie told him it was because of bed space and the hospital's new policy of keeping patients with the same care team so everyone was familiar with the course of treatment. Dr. Peers told him that it was because he was recovering so nicely she wanted all the credit. Then with a wink added that she needed a pretty face to look at and that Old Mr. Croom down the hall just wasn’t doing it for her. 

Will is choosing to believe Dr. Peers. 

Six days in a coma, six days awake and if he keeps progressing like he has, Dr. Peers has promised he can leave in six more. Will is pretty sure he’s going to go crazy before then. 

He has visitors which helps with boredom during the day, his parents, Susan, Ray, Standish and Jai, but never her. Jai won’t confirm that she’s here, but he doesn’t deny it either. 

Sometimes Will’s convinced he can smell her shampoo, hear her voice, and feel her touch. He thinks it’s her anyway, no one else makes his skin tingle when they touch him. But each time he thinks he’s finally right and she’s here he opens his eyes to the darkness of an empty room. 

It’s small things that make him believe it’s true. A cup from her favourite coffee shop in the washroom’s trash can with her shade of lipstick on the rim, copies of Notting Hill, You've Got Mail and Die Hard added to the pile of DVDs that he would swear weren’t there the day before, and the Playboys Standish had brought being replaced with the most recent issues Readers Digest and Home and Garden, magazines she would always mock him for reading. 

The most damning piece of evidence of all however, is the small tube of lip balm an orderly found under this bed yesterday and returned to Will thinking it was his. Toasted coconut and vanilla. There’s only one person he knows that buys that kind in bulk claiming she needs it because he’s always stealing it off her lips. 

None of this is concrete evidence and he can’t prove it but he knows she’s here, and comes to see him when he sleeps. Or he wants her to be here so bad he’s convinced himself she is. Either way Will is determined to stay awake long enough tonight to know for sure. 

The exercise during the day and the meds they give at night leave him so exhausted it's been impossible to stay awake at night so far, but he’s sure he can do it, he just needs to be sneaky. 

Will knows how to be sneaky. He’s got years of experience. The FBI trained him for this, and they trained him well. 

Unfortunately, they did not train him to go up against the day nurse.

Nurse Hilda or Nurse Ratched as Will secretly calls her, is surely the meanest person he’s ever met in his life. She’s never once smiled at him, rips the bandages from his body without care and doesn’t talk beyond barking at him to eat, drink or swallow whatever pills she’s slapped down in front of him. Including the pills that put him to sleep at night. 

Every night for the last six, Nurse Ratched has unceremoniously placed two pills and a bowl of green jello in front of Will at 10:00pm with a demand he eat and take the pills. Tonight he’s going to refuse. Well not outright refuse really, he doesn’t have a death wish. He’s just going to pretend he took the pills like a good patient and hide them under the covers until she leaves. 

Will has plaques on his walls and metals in cases that prove how good he is at his job. Awards that highlight his dedication to training and the skills he’s perfected. If there was an award for Most Sneaky, Will is sure it would be resting right alongside them. Or it would be if he didn’t have one broken arm and shaky hands courtesy of the pain meds and muscle relaxants coursing through his veins. 

Nurse Ratched caught him red handed and with narrowed eyes that Will swears would make a lesser man cry, tore out of the room like she was on fire. 

Dr. Peers entered the room a few minutes later with an air of authority and a smug looking Nurse Ratched hot on her heels. 

“Being difficult tonight are we?” The doctor asked, slight amusement in her voice.

Will just shrugs slightly and glares a little at the nurse.

“Can you get some ice chips for Agent Chase, please Hilda.” Dr. Peers asks turning to look at the nurse before looking back at Will. 

With a mumble that Will can’t quite make out, the meanest nurse in the world exits the room, closing the door firmly behind her. 

“I can’t believe she tattled on me.” Will mumbles.

“Oh she tattled hard.” Dr. Peers laughs, before turning serious. “Why don’t you want to take the pills Will?”

“I don’t like that they knock me out. They put me so deep under it makes me uneasy.” It’s the truth, Will reasons, so he’s not really lying. He’s just not telling the whole truth either, and it causes his belly to ache a little. He doesn’t like lying. 

After a long appraising look Dr. Peers offers him a deal. “We’ll wait an hour to see how you’re managing the pain once the last full dose has worn off. I don’t want to take you off completely and shock your system but if in an hour your pain is manageable and you're able to fall asleep on your own I’ll reduce the dosage. Your body needs the rest to recover Will, and it can’t rest if you’re in pain.” 

It’s the best deal he’s likely to get so Will accepts. 

*************

At 11:00pm on the dot he hears the door open once again. Sweat is dripping from his brow and his stomach and arm hurt something fierce but Will is determined not to take more than one pill tonight. 

“Dr. Peers says you’re being mule headed.” Maggie teases, walking across the room to stand beside his bed. 

“Wouldn’t be the first time someone’s accused me of that.” Will says back with a small grimace.

“She wants you to take one pill now and leave you with the option of a second pill if you want it.” Maggie explains placing the small white pill in his hand.

“I won’t want it.” Will says kindly but firmly, then swallows the pill without a fight. He really is in pain, but not enough to miss the chance to see Frankie if she comes. 

Maggie doesn’t argue, just smiles sweetly at him and places a small container in front of him with a wooden spoon resting on top. “Thought you might be sick of jello so I smuggled you some ice cream. They only had vanilla left but I figured it was better than nothing” 

Will looks at the frozen treat, and feels a lump rise in his throat. 

“What’s the problem, don’t you like ice cream?” Maggie asks softly, when Will makes no move to eat it.

Will clears his throat softly. “Yes, sorry I was just trying to remember the last time I had it.” He says, smiling gently at her in appreciation. 

“Well good eat it up, don’t want to get a stomach ache from that pill.”

“Thank you, Maggie.” Will nods and dips the wooden stick into the cool treat. 

“You’re welcome, Will. Click that button if you want that second pill. I’ll be around to check on you in a bit.” Maggie says, heading for the door and leaving him alone once more. 

Will slowly eats the ice cream, the frozen flavours dancing on his tongue causing the the sweetest of memories to begin floating in his head. He’s getting tired, even just one pill making his brain feel fuzzy and his body warm and limp.  _ Gotta stay awake, gotta see her. _ Will thinks as he puts the container down and pulls his blanket higher.  _ Can’t fall asleep, _ he instructs even as his eyes flutter closed and the sweet memory that was floating in his mind becomes an even sweeter dream that Will is more than happy to succumb to. 

****************

_ Frankie won’t tell him where they’re going. They left the bar almost a half an hour ago and she hasn’t said more than a few words since. He’s not sure what changed. One minute he was offering her that overly sweet wine she loves and bracing for the dramatic eye roll and mockery he was sure to receive when he explained his new shot glass arrangement, and the next she was throwing back his drink and telling him to keep up as she walked out of the bar.  _

_ With a quick yell to let Jai know they were leaving, Will grabbed his jacket and the sweater that scandalized Standish not that long ago and chased Frankie out the door, ready to follow her just about anywhere she’d take him.  _

_ Will wants to hold her hand, these days after the customary threat to break his, she usually lets him. But she suddenly tense since walking out of the bar and shoved her hands into her pockets, away from his seeking fingers.  _

_ Still confused by her abrupt mood change, Will sits as close as she’ll tolerate as they ride the crowded subway towards whatever destination she has in mind.  _

_ There’s a sloppily dressed man standing a little ways down the car from them. He’s leaning against the wall leering at Frankie while licking his lips and playing with the zipper on his fly. Frankie doesn’t seem to care, or notice for that matter. But Will does, and he doesn't like it one bit.  _

_ Risking life and limb Will moves one arm around her shoulders and his other to rest his hand on her leg significantly above her knee, glaring at the man trying to make it clear she’s not available. The man in question doesn’t even acknowledge Will just goes right on ogling Frankie, tongue peeking in and out of his mouth in a grotesque motion.  _

_ Out of the corner of his eye he sees Frankie turn to look at his hand then his face. Will doesn’t move his eyes from the creep. He hears a soft snort escape from Frankie as she follows his steel eyed gaze and sees the man staring at her.  _

_ With a slight shift Frankie crosses her legs towards Will trapping his hand in the process and leans in close so she’s pressed fully against his side.  _

_ “Careful Whiskey, your inner caveman is showing.” She teases softly right into his ear, smoothing her hand over his thigh and making his whole body shiver.  _

_ “Yeah, I’m ok with that.” He whispers back, pressing his lips to her temple and holding them there while he continues to shoot daggers from his eyes at the man. _

_ “My hero.” Frankie sighs dramatically, and lets her body fall further against Will as they continue on their journey.  _

_ Will takes pride in the fact that he’s usually slow to anger, and he never resorts to violence outside of the necessity of missions. However, two stops later the man has moved closer and is still trying to catch Frankie’s attention. Will is pretty sure he’s going to get himself arrested if he keeps it up.  _

_ The only thing stopping him from moving to knock the pervert on his ass is the thought of having to move Frankie from her spot tucked into him, her hand running up and down his thigh. He definitely doesn’t want to move her.  _

_ Turns out Will doesn’t need to make the decision to move after all. As the subway pulls into the next station, Frankie untangles herself from him, stands up and offers him her hand. “Let’s go, lover.” She says loud enough for everyone in the car to hear her and shoots Will a wink so provocative he forgets all about the man and his unwelcome smolder.  _

_ With a smile bigger than should be possible on his face, he holds her hand as she leads him from the station and out onto the streets of New York.  _

_ His nose is immediately assaulted with the smells of Little Italy. His stomach is thrilled, and his heart is doing a happy dance high in his chest because Frankie is holding his hand tightly, almost like she’s scared he’ll run away if she lets go. He’s not going anywhere. _

_ She leads him north on Mulberry St., weaving in and out of the booths and carts setting up for what looks like a street festival. Will is more confused about their destination the further they go. Frankie doesn’t seem like a street festival kind of person. Too many people, too much laughing, too many families out having fun. Not enough people she can shoot.  _

_ He’s still trying to figure it out when she comes to a dead stop at the corner of Broome St. right on the edge of the Italian Village. He feels her grip on him loosen until her hand is hanging limply and slightly shaking in his. He immediately tightens his hold.  _

_ Her face has gone pale, almost ashen and she’s staring silently across the road with what Will thinks might be slightly moist and definitely glassy eyes. He follows her gaze and finds himself looking at a small storefront with the words “Frankie’s Pizza and Gelato - Best in the City since 1952” written across the window in bright red paint.  _

_ When she doesn’t say anything or move from her spot Will begins to worry.  _

_ “You holding out on me Trowbridge? Open up a pizzeria and not tell me? Little rude not to tell your wooer. Here I’ve been feeding you for weeks and you’ve got yourself a whole restaurant and haven’t bought me dinner once.” Will tries teasing her, she always fights back, always. _

_ But she doesn't this time. She just continues to stare, breathing shallow and a little too fast for Will’s liking. Time to try something new.  _

_ “Frankie. Frankie honey, look at me.” Will tries, speaking softly and bringing his hand to her cheek running his thumb over her face softly. If nothing else Will is sure the endearment will get a rise out of her. Frankie hates endearments. Will’s made a vow to himself to find one she doesn’t.  _

_ “I don’t like ice cream.” Frankie blurts out softly, as if it explains what’s happening.  _

_ “Ok...” Will nods, trying to encourage her, feeling more lost than ever. _

_ Frankie takes a deep breath and closes her eyes. “My mum and I were close. Really close. My friends thought it was weird that I wanted to spend so much time with her and told her everything, but she was my best friend you know.” _

_ “Yeah.” Will agrees softly, feeling an ache deep in his chest at her loss.  _

_ “I think I surprised her more than anyone when I told them I wanted to finish my last two years of high school at the all girls boarding school she went to when she was a girl in Ireland. My dad was against it from the start, didn’t want his little girl half way across the world where he couldn’t glare at the boys that came too close by his measurement. But I wanted away from all the stupid teenage drama of boys and a hierarchy of power based on clothing labels and who you were sleeping with. The idea of uniforms, strict rules, rigorous academics and curfews appealed to me believe it or not. Mum understood that, so she got him to agree...She always got him to agree.” Frankie says softly, with a sad wistful smile. _

_ “Like mother, like daughter.” Will comments softly, earning a tiny smile aimed in his direction. _

_ “Her only condition” Frankie continues “was that I go to the end of the year school dance the summer before I left. I didn’t want to, but I agreed anyway just to make her happy.” _

_ Will listens to her tell her story. She doesn’t talk about her parents much and he’s not entirely sure why she’s chosen to now, but he makes sure to listen closely to every syllable. _

_ “I told you before I was a girly girl when I was younger, but my mum was much better at it than me. Never a hair out of place when we left the house and always had her lipstick done just so. She insisted that I get a new dress for the dance, so she brought me to the city to find the perfect one.” Frankie recalls softly.  _

_ “I didn’t care about the dress, I just wanted to spend the day with her, so I let her drag me around from shop to shop trying on dress after dress until she decided a shamrock green one with rhinestones littered across the chest and a flowy skirt was perfect. Claimed it made my eyes shine like the hills of Ireland and that I better get used to the comparison because I would be hearing it a lot once I moved.” _

_ “They do.” Will agrees softly, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear and feeling a wave of regret at never having had the chance to meet the woman who brought an ever growing part of his heart into this world.  _

_ Frankie shifts her eyes to him and offers another tiny upturn of her lips.  _

_ “We had to have it altered slightly, and my mum knew a seamstress who had a small shop around the corner from here so we walked the block while we waited. Mum saw that pizza shop and said it was a sign we had to stop.” Frankie recounts as she gestures across the street.  _

_ “We ate cheese pizza and grapefruit gelato on the patio and watched the world go by as we talked about everything and anything under the sun for hours. It was one of the best days of my life.” She finishes softly, voice hitching slightly.  _

_ “I’m sorry you lost them Frankie.” Will murmurs, not sure what to say but knowing he is lucky to have heard her story.  _

_ “They would have liked you.” Frankie offers shyly, but with certainty. _

_ “Yeah?” Will marvels. He can think of no higher praise than that. _

_ Frankie nods slightly, takes a deep breath, reaches for his hand and holds his gaze for a moment before opening her mouth once more. _

_ “I don’t like ice cream. But maybe...maybe I could be the girl you get gelato with…” Frankie trails off softly looking shy and slightly nervous. _

_ Will feels his heart explode in his chest when he grasps her words and fits all the pieces together. A million ways of saying yes flicker though his mind, but none of them can exit his mouth around the sudden lump in his throat.  _

_ “Will?” Frankie prompts softly, when he doesn’t say anything, her eyes shining with worry. _

_ “Are you sure?” Is all Will can force out. He needs her to be sure. “You need to be sure Frankie, because once I have you...once we do this for real...I don’t know that I’ll ever be able to let you go.”  _

_ She looks at him appraisingly. He’s desperate to touch her, to hold her, to kiss her. But he can’t do that if she’s not all in. He can’t do this half way. Not with her. _

_ Stepping into his space, Frankie lifts her hands to rest on his chest and looks him in the eye without wavering. “I want to try Will. I can’t promise I won’t mess up. Probably more than once. But I can promise to try. I really want to try.” She whispers her promise like a vow and Will has never been more sure of her than he is right in this moment.  _

_ He’s wanted her for so long and now she’s here and wants him too. She wants him, not just for sex or as a partner. She wants him the way he wants her. He’s pretty sure he’s going to pass out. He’s absolutely sure he’s going to cry.  _

_ “Slow.” He whispers. One hand resting on her cheek while the other pulls her close. “We’ll go slow Francesca. Get it right.” _

_ “How slow?” She whispers, even as she’s nodding in agreement and pressing closer, dipping her gaze briefly to his lips. _

_ “Glacier slow.” Will whispers back, pulling her closer. _

_ “Hmm” _

_ “Like molasses.” Will hums, one hand finding its way into her curls. _

_ “That’s pretty slow.”  _

_ “Herd of turtles running through peanut butter slow.” Not even a shadow of light between them now.  _

_ “Why would turtles be running through peanut butter?” Frankie questions lips only a hair away from his.  _

_ “No idea but it sounds pretty slow.” _

_ “Yeah. I like it.” Frankie acknowledges with a sigh.  _

_ “I like you.” _

_ “That’s handy because I like you too.” She admits. Will swears his heart is going to beat out of his chest any moment now. _

_ “That’s very good news for me.” So damn good, Will thinks. _

_ “Whiskey?” _

_ “Yeah?” _

_ “You can kiss me now.” Frankie says lifting one hand from his chest to the back of his head pulling his lips so close he feels her lips brush his while she speaks.  _

_ “Yeah” He swears he’s got a substantial vocabulary, hell he was speech captain of his high school, but his brain seems to have shut down.  _

_ “Slow.” It’s the last word Frankie whispers before Will steals her lips with his.  _

_ The world seems to disappear for Will the moment their lips truly meet. No car horns blaring, no music from the festival dancing on his eardrums, no laughing of Italian grandmothers as they watch the antics of the tiny humans they adore. Everything stops. There’s just Frankie now.  _

_ It's everything their kiss in France was not. It’s soft and sweet, full of promise and discovery and lingers as though they both dread the very thought of letting go. It's the best first kiss Will has ever had. No, it's the best kiss he’s ever had, period. He never wants it to stop.  _

_ The need for air eventually wins and pulls them apart but they stay close, foreheads pressed together breath mingling as they both try to regain their equilibrium. They’re so close Will can feel Frankie’s eyelashes flutter as she opens her eyes and green meets green.  _

_ “I don’t want the wooing to stop.” Frankie confesses in a whisper, breaking the silence.  _

_ “I knew you loved it.” Will whispers, before leaning in to taste the shy smile on her lips.  _

_ “I like not having to buy my own coffee in the morning.” Frankie sasses with a smile against his mouth.  _

_ “That’s it? All the wooing I did and it all comes down to a hot cup of coffee.” Will asks trying to frown but finding it impossible to remove the smile from his face.  _

_ “I liked the iced coffee too.” Frankie deadpans. _

_ Will softly laughs and angles his head to kiss her forehead, cheek, then the corner of her mouth. “I’ll never stop wooing you.” he vows, then seals it with a final kiss pressed to the lips he’s already addicted to. _

_ “Better not.” Frankie demands in a whisper, then gives his bottom lip a small bite before she pulls her mouth away, burying her face in his neck and wrapping both arms around him.  _

_ Will holds her close, nose inhaling the green apple scent of her hair and the vanilla perfume on her skin, thanking every lucky star he’s ever wished on that he’s been given the opportunity to do so.  _

_ Yeah he’s never letting her go.  _

_ They stand there holding each other for several minutes, her arms around his waist one hand tucked into his back pocket, his slowly trailing up and down her back and smoothing her hair. It must look weird to those passing by, them just standing there, but Will doesn’t care he’ll stand here on this street corner and hold her just as long as she’ll let him.  _

_ She pulls back eventually and looks him in the eye. She still looks wary and nervous. From sharing so much of her usually off limits history or her decision to try, Will isn’t sure. But he is sure that he wants that look to go away. _

_ “We need to go. Big mission ahead.” Will says with mock seriousness.  _

_ “Oh yeah?” Frankie raises an eyebrow at him in question. _

_ “Oh yeah, very serious mission. Lots of risk involved.”  _

_ “Sounds dangerous.” Frankie murmurs back.  _

_ He throws her his very best cocky smile, kisses her quickly and takes her hand. “Don’t worry pretty girl, I’ll hold your hand so you don’t get scared.” _

_ “You are such a dork, I can’t believe I let you kiss me.” Frankie fires back, a smile playing on her lips, while she rolls her eyes.  _

_ Will feels his heart skip a beat, he loves when she sasses him when they’re alone. Hell, he loves it anytime. _

_ Will offers her a wink, then walks her across the street, into the shop and orders two grapefruit gelatos, his hand never once leaving hers. Best day of his life.  _

  
  


**********************

Will can hear muffled voices around him. Floating in and out of his ears as he tries to make out the words.

“Good progress...walking straighter...without help...swelling mostly gone...home within the week…” Maggie, he thinks, but can’t be sure it’s all too cloudy in his ears.  _ Who is she talking to? _

“Show off.” He hears clear as day coming from his right side. He knows that voice. He knows that sass. He’d know that sass even if it was a whisper in the middle of game seven at Yankee Stadium. 

She’s here. 

His hand is tingling where she’s holding it. He wants to open his eyes and squeeze her hand but his body won’t listen to him.  _ Open your eyes _ . He commands of himself, but they stubbornly remain closed his hand limp. 

“I see the bandage is off your arm, all healed up then?” Maggie speaks once again, and this time Will can hear clearly. 

“Yeah it was just a small cut, nothing special.” The love of his life answers.  _ She’s hurt? Someone hurt her? Open your eyes! _

“Did you hurt your hip at the same time?” Maggie asks. Will feels Frankie’s hand tighten on his, but she doesn’t respond.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to pry. I’ve just noticed you rub it a lot and thought it might have been bruised.” Maggie apologizes softly. 

There’s a long stretch of silence before he hears Frankie’s soft voice. “It’s nothing, just an old injury that left a scar, rub it out of habit I guess.” 

_ No Francesca, I trace that scar softly when we’re alone. I run my fingers over it to comfort you. When I’m holding you at night the rhythm of my fingers ghosting over it causes you to sigh and helps you fall asleep. I map that scarred stretch of skin with my lips when I love you and it makes you shudder. That scar is mine.  _

“He’s restless tonight.” Frankie comments moving the focus back to him. She always hates being the one focused on.

“He only took one sleeping pill tonight. He said he doesn’t like how they make him feel.” Maggie responds. Will feels Frankie let go of his hand and he misses the connection immediately. A second later he can feel a hand pulling softly at his IV. It’s not Frankie, his fingers aren't tingling. 

“He doesn’t like to rely on drugs. Even over the counter stuff, rarely takes them. He’d rather take a nap and hope for the best than take cold medicine.” Frankie says softly from further away than he’d like.  _ I’d rather take a nap with you and let you make me feel better Frankie.  _

“Tough guy eh?” Maggie questions, dropping his hand.

“Toughest Care Bear there ever was.” Frankie sasses, and moves to make his fingers tingle once again.

“Well tough or not, something tells me he’s going to regret this decision in the morning. His muscles are tense, so he’ll be sore. Dr. Peers lowered the sleeping pills but she ordered a slow release of pain meds to continue, it will help him sleep a little easier, he needs the rest to recover.” Maggie insists just as Will feels a rush of cool liquid hit his veins where his IV is attached. 

Between the medicine invading his body and the hypnotic feeling of Frankie’s thumb rubbing over the back of his hand he misses Frankie’s reply.  _ Stay awake, open your eyes, squeeze her hand! Stay awake, open your eyes, squeeze her hand! Awake. Open. Squeeze. _

*********************

Maggie has just left the room and silence has once again fallen when Frankie feels a small squeeze pressing in on her fingers. It’s so soft, barely there really and Frankie is almost able to convince herself she imagined it when it happens again. 

She snaps her eyes to his face, watching closely and holding her breath. She watches his eyes flutter with dreams like they’ve done every night before this, but there’s a tight anguished frown on his face tonight where his sleepy smile usually rests.

She’s lifting her hand to smooth the worry from his brow when his eyes suddenly open and green meets green for the first time in almost four months. 

His eyes are cloudy with sleep and drugs and they only hold open for a fraction of a second before closing to the world once more. She feels him squeeze her hand and weakly pull it closer before he sighs out a whisper as sleep pulls him under. But it’s enough.

It’s enough for her to have seen the relief and hope in his eyes. Enough for her to feel guilt and pain at the whisper of the name he loves to call her. Enough for her to know she stayed too long.

She should have left six days ago when he woke up, but she couldn’t do it. 

She should have left five days ago when he called her name, but she couldn’t do it. 

She should have left four days ago when his feeding tube and catheter were removed, but she couldn’t do it. 

She should have left three days ago when he was well enough to get out of bed and walk the halls, but she couldn’t do it. 

She should have left two days ago when his brain scan came back clear, but she couldn’t do it. 

She should have left yesterday when the stitches and staples covering his body were removed, but she couldn’t do it. 

It’s time for her to go now. 

It's time for her to go and not come back. 

She’s just not sure if she can do it. 


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to everyone who's sticking around and leaving the love! We're getting there friends I just want to make sure I get it right when we do.
> 
> I hope you enjoy! Happy reading.

“He’s being released tomorrow.”

Susan’s voice reaches Frankie from across Jai’s kitchen table as the two women sit tensely across from one another. It’s the first time they’ve seen each other since their meeting at the diner almost three weeks ago and both are still feeling the sting of the words spoken then.

It’s almost 9pm and Susan showed up unannounced about 20 minutes ago. Jai suddenly had an urgent errand to run just a few minutes later, and with a pointed and unapologetic look in Frankie’s direction he left them alone. 

Frankie doesn’t for one minute believe she hasn’t been set up. 

Frankie nods and takes a sip of the herbal tea Jai insists she drink at night to help her sleep, but doesn’t comment. What could she possibly say. 

“Frankie?”

“Hmmm”

“Why are you still here?”

The question catches Frankie off guard. She assumed Susan was here to try to convince her to stay. To talk to Will. To go back to the way it was. She was ready for that. Not questions about why she hadn’t disappeared again. She doesn’t have answers to those. 

“You know Will is going to be fine, you know he’s going to make a full recovery, you know he’s going home tomorrow and will be back at work in a month or two. So why are you still here?” Susan looks genuinely confused as she asks.

“I don’t know.” Frankie answers honestly, because really, she has no fucking idea.

“That was the plan right? That’s what you told me, make sure he’s ok, then leave again. Pretend you were never here, that you didn’t care enough to come.”

Frankie nods slightly, those were her words, that was the plan. No that  _ is _ the plan, she reminds herself, she’s leaving. 

“He’s been in the hospital for 21 days, but he’s been out of danger for 13 of those days and fully lucid for over a week. So I guess I’m just wondering why if you’re so determined to run and hide from him, from all of us, why you’re still here.” Susan isn’t using her interrogator or physcologist voice while she asks the questions Frankie has no answers to, she’s asking as a friend. Frankie thinks that might be worse. 

“He was supposed to be home three days ago.” Frankie responds, in a weak attempt to defend her continued presence. 

“Is that what you’re waiting for? Him to be home?”

“Maybe.” Is that what she’s waiting for? Frankie wonders. Seems like it could be a good enough reason. Just to be sure. 

“He got cocky during PT and set himself back a few days. No harm done other than a bruised ego and some sore ribs.” Susan explains the delay, but with narrowed eyes that tell Frankie she doesn’t believe that might be her reason for sticking around any more than Frankie believes it herself. 

“Probably trying to impress the doctor. He likes to impress people.” Frankie tries to joke softly, anything to ease the tension. 

“Yeah he does. But I have a feeling it was about something else.” 

Frankie falls silent. She thinks it was too. Knows it was. Maggie texted her the night it happened and told her that Will was trying to push himself harder, to rush his release so he could get home.

“He’s been asking about you.” Susan says after a moment of silence.

When Frankie doesn’t respond Susan continues. “He knows you’re here or were here at one point anyway. Says he’s sure he saw you one night, heard you talking.”

_ Fuck Fuck Fuck _ Frankie thinks while shifting in her seat, before admitting softly. “I was hoping he was too drugged to remember.”

“He looks tired when I visit him during the day. I looked at his chart, he’s not sleeping at night. I asked him why, he told me he tries to stay awake to see you again. Says you never came back.” Susan tilts her head as she speaks, like she’s trying to solve an unsolvable riddle. 

“No.” Frankie replies to the unspoken question. She couldn’t risk it. 

“When was the last time you saw him?”

“Eight days ago. He stopped taking his sleeping pills, then the pain pills, and I couldn’t be sure he was asleep anymore.” Being away from him this past week has nearly killed her, it was better before she came back. At least she thinks it was better. 

“But you were there every night before that?” Susan continues her questions softly. 

Frankie nods her confirmation, she doesn’t want to lie to Susan. She’s so damn tired of all the lies. 

Susan exhales slowly and reaches across the table to grab Frankie’s hand.“You sat at his bedside every night for almost two weeks pobrecita. Why?”

“I love him.” Frankie whispers softly, forcing herself to look Susan in the eyes while she does. It’s the truth and for some unexplained reason Frankie needs Susan to believe her. To know it’s still true. Will always be true.

“You should tell him that.” Susan encourages just as softly. 

Frankie looks back down at the table, she can’t do that. 

“So what’s the plan now then?” Susan asks when she doesn’t get a response. 

“I don’t know.”

“Will you tell me when you do?”

“Maybe.” Frankie doesn’t want to make another promise she can’t keep. 

Susan sighs softly and brushes at a tear that has escaped as she stands from the table. Moving closer to Frankie she bends and presses a kiss to the top of her head as she whispers. “Be safe pobrecita, and always know that you are loved and missed.”

“That’s it? You’re not going to ask me why I left or try to make me stay and talk to Will.” Frankie questions raising from the table and following Susan to the living room where she’s putting on her coat. 

“Would you tell me if I did? Would you talk to him if I asked?” Susan counters. 

Frankie just stares at her, both already knowing the answer to Susan’s questions. Frankie drops her gaze as shame settles in her chest, she should be used to the feeling by now, but it feels heavier than ever tonight. 

Maybe if she just told Susan why, that pressure might ease just a little. 

Frankie is debating doing just that when Susan’s voice interrupts her weighing of the pros and cons. 

“They never filled your spot. Will wouldn't let them.”

Frankie looks up at Susan in surprise, both at the sudden topic change and the information it offered.

“After it was clear you weren’t coming back, Ray made Will look through 47 different agent profiles trying to find a replacement. Nine agents would have worked, had the proper skills and demeanour to fit our team. Will said no to every last one. Ray forced him to meet with them anyway. Seven didn’t make it through the interview, and the two that did, well I imagine they wished they hadn’t with what Will put them through. No one was good enough. No one was you.”

Frankie isn’t sure how she’s supposed to respond to that. 

“You can leave again Frankie. You can run and hide and never come back. But he’s never going to stop looking. Never going to move on. Never going to be whole. Not without you. Not without knowing why.”

“The why will make it worse.” Frankie whispers, knowing the excuse is not enough. 

“You said that before. You said you being here would be worse. But I don’t think that’s possible Frankie. You don’t see how depressed he is, you don’t see the sadness in his eyes or the worry on his face. You say you love him, but honey you need to give him the chance to love you too. To love you in spite of whatever it is that made you run in the first place. And if it’s true and he does hate you as much as you think he will, well maybe that will let him move on, because holding on to you when you’re gone...he’s slowly slipping away Frankie, and you’re the only one that can save him. You owe him that.” Susan finishes softly, tears falling from her eyes freely now. 

Frankie closes her eyes and swallows the bile rising in her throat as the reality of what she’s done to him by running sinks in. 

“You have a home here Frankie, people that love you, whether you and Will figure it out or not, I hope you know that.”

Frankie hears the door close softly and opens her eyes to find herself standing alone in the dim light of Jai’s apartment. She’s cold, and tired, and more than anything wishes she wasn’t alone anymore. 

  
  


**********************

_ After Will’s promise of wooing and Frankie issuing her challenging acceptance they walked around Prague for hours. Will points out the tourist highlights and insists on buying her the smallest tackiest snow globe keychain she’s ever seen to “commemorate the beginning of their wooing journey” he insists. Frankie just rolls her eyes and fights a grin while she calls him a dork and puts it in her pocket where she keeps her fingers wrapped around it for the rest of the day.  _

_ She never tells him she had actually lived in Prague for a year and was intimately familiar with the tourist attractions. She just lets him lead her around, listening intently to his excited ramblings about a bridge or a church or the little bakery he insists they visit before they leave.  _

_ They don’t hold hands or stand too close, in fact if someone was watching them while they roamed the city, in and out of shops and over bridges, they might never know they were testing the waters to see if they could be more than just partners in the field.  _

_ But if they looked closer, they might see Will’s hand at the small of Frankie’s back as they pass through the doors he holds for her. Or the blush that rises to his cheeks when she whispers something to him in line while they wait for their coffee and pastries. Or the small wistful smile that crosses her face when he brushes a stray hair away from her eyes.  _

_ Frankie isn’t sure what she expected when she agreed to this wooing plan, but she’s kinda loving it so far. Not that she’ll tell him that.  _

_ She’s fighting a smile and gearing up to mock him for his sappiness after he tells her the sunset they’re watching from the look out they started their day at is not half as pretty as she is when the piercing ring of her phone interrupts her. _

_ The news the call offers brings their day to an abrupt end and has them racing for the airport, wooing forgotten and in mission mode once again.  _

_ Standish has been stabbed, Ollerman is alive and Frankie is pissed.  _

_ It’s a tense plane ride home. Standish, Jai and Susan had flown back to New York the night before on the jet where Ray could be comfortably stretched out on the couch after being released from the hospital. That meant that Frankie and Will had to fly commercial. The only direct tickets home were in first class and outrageously priced. Will didn’t even blink at the cost as he laid his Mastercard on the desk and asked for two seats together.  _

_ They didn’t talk much during the flight, both thinking about what went wrong and worrying about Standish. Will did reach for her hand as soon as they sat down though and hasn’t let it go since. She hasn’t let go either.  _

_ Will falls asleep somewhere over the Atlantic and the jarring of the plane has his head falling to rest on her shoulder. She doesn’t move him, instead she lays her head on his and tries to sleep herself. It doesn't work but the feel of his body and the sound of his deep breathing is enough to relax her into some kind of restful state.  _

_ When they land Will doesn’t let go of her hand. He holds it as they rush through the airport and into a taxi, and is still holding tight when they arrive at the hospital and into the waiting room that holds everyone Frankie loves.  _

_ The team looks up when they enter. Ray looks like he’s going to pass out, Susan looks worried and begins telling them about Standish, but it's Jai she watches, she can read him best and his silent language will tell her everything she needs to know.  _

_ Jai doesn’t look concerned which provides her with instant relief, but he does look suspicious as his eyes travel from her face to her hand still attached to Will’s and back up again, questions clear in his dark gaze.  _

_ Frankie returns the steady gaze and slightly raises her chin almost in defiance without letting go of Will’s hand. Jai tilts his head ever so slightly to the left and gives her an almost imperceptible nod. The approval she didn’t ask for, but desperately wanted is given.  _

_ Standish is going to be fine. The knife missed all the major arteries, muscles and bones. They had to operate to repair some soft tissue damage, he’ll have some PT to do and will be staying at the hospital for a couple of days but he’ll be fine.  _

_ The news is a welcome relief to all of them, they’ve all had more than enough loss in their lives and no one is eager to add another name to the list. Frankie most of all. She loves the nerd, and when she finds Ollerman she’s going to make sure he suffers. _

_ Once they’re sure Standish is going to be ok and is resting comfortably for the night they each make their way home with the promise to meet back in the morning as soon as visiting hours begin.  _

_ Frankie is watching Will help Susan usher a very pale looking Ray into a cab when she feels Jai grasp her elbow and pull her gently away and out of ear shot.  _

_ “You good?” He whispers to her softly. _

_ “Yeah.” Frankie whispers back, eyes still on Will and Susan. _

_ “Francesca.” Jai says, and uses his hand on her chin to guide her eyes back to his. “Are you sure?” He asks, after searching her eyes for a moment.  _

_ She knows he’s talking about Will. He always looks the other way when it comes to the men in her life, never gets involved. He knows they won’t be around for long or be used for anything more than fun. She’s been lovers with people they’ve worked with before, but still Jai has never once questioned her motives or criticized her needs. He must know this thing with Will is different, it feels different.  _

_ “No.” She’s not sure, not yet, but she’s determined to try.  _

_ “He could be good for you.” _

_ “I could be bad for him.” _

_ “The way he’s been looking at you tonight, I think he’s willing to risk it. Are you?” Jai questions softly.  _

_ Frankie doesn’t really have an answer, not one she’s willing to commit to out loud yet anyway, so she goes with what she knows; sarcasm and mockery. “He says he’s going to woo me. Make it impossible for me not to want him. Cocky son of a bitch.”  _

_ “Hmmmm.” Jai responds then looks back and forth between Will now standing alone at the curb clearly waiting for her and Frankie who is trying desperately not to blush when Jai’s steady gaze hits her again.  _

_ “My money’s on him.” Jai says eventually, then presses a kiss to her forehead. With a squeeze of her fingers he leads her toward Will and the cab he’s hailed for them. _

_ “I think I’m going to walk home, it’s a nice night and it’s not that far.” _

_ “Are you sure Jai, we can drop you on the way.” Will offers, holding the door open for Frankie as she slides in and across the seat.  _

_ “I’m sure. I’m trusting you to get her home safely Will, do not disappoint me.” Jai makes his veiled threat with a stern look and gleam in his eye. _

_ “Jai...” Frankie says with a whine, amused by his big brother act but knowing Will is going to take the assignment to heart. _

_ “You have my word. Jai I won’t let anything happen to her I swear.” Will vows with so much conviction in his voice that Frankie feels a flutter in her chest.  _

_ Jai offers a small nod after a moment, and Will nods back. It seems Will has been given the approval as well. Frankie can’t help but roll her eyes at the entire exchange. She can’t help the smile that tugs at her lips either.  _

_ “If the two of you are done negotiating my chaperone I’d like to go home now, I’m tired and hungry and haven’t shot anyone in almost 36 hours and you both know that makes me cranky.” Frankie snarks, earning amused looks from both men and a wary look from the cab driver.  _

_ Jai turns to her and gives her a look she thinks is supposed to be stern, but she can see the laughter in his eyes. “Goodnight Francesca, be good.” _

_ “Never.” Frankie promises in return, offering him a quick wink. _

_ “William.” Jai says nodding at Will, then with one last glare in her direction he turns and walks away from the cab leaving Frankie and Will alone with the still uneasy looking driver.  _

_ It’s a short ride to Frankie’s place, she doesn’t live far but they have to pass Will’s place on the way. They argue about dropping him off first but he’s adamant that he promised Jai he’d get her home safely and he intends to do just that. The driver looks even more concerned when she threatens to shoot Will for being ridiculous. Will counters that he’s being chivalrous, all part of the wooing package he declares. Frankie huffs and rolls her eyes but stops arguing.  _

_ When the cab pulls up to the curb Frankie gets out with a quick goodbye and is surprised when Will exits after her, the cab speeding quickly away.  _

_ “What are you doing?” _

_ “Making sure you get inside ok.” _

_ “Are you serious?” _

_ “Of course, I made a promise and I haven’t fulfilled it yet. Eagle Scouts always fulfill their promises.” Will says, puffing out his chest in pride.  _

_ “You’re insane” Frankie says with a laugh, not moving from her spot on the sidewalk.  _

_ “Yeah, but I think you like it.” Will smirks at her in the way that makes her stomach feel like there’s millions of butterflies fluttering around inside it.  _

_ “Here let me take your bag.” Will says, reaching for her old backpack.  _

_ “I can carry my own bag Will.” _

_ “Wooing by Whiskey is a full service operation Frankie, that includes but is not limited to bag carrying when required.” _

_ “I’m going to remind you of that the next time we have to carry 50 pounds of explosives through the Spanish countryside.” Frankie says, as she watches him fling her bag over his shoulder alongside his own.  _

_ “Ewww…should have read the fine print on the wooing contract pretty girl, bag carrying is limited to 40 pounds when out of the country.” Will informs her with mock sympathy.  _

_ “Damn.” Frankie deadpans. _

_ “I know, so sad. But what can you do, rules are rules.”  _

_ “Eagle Scouts do love their rules.” _

_ “That’s what makes us so sexy.” Will says, with a wink.  _

_ “Keep telling yourself that Whiskey.”  _

_ “Every morning when I look in the mirror, beautiful.” _

_ Frankie just shakes her head and fights a smile as she turns and unlocks the front door of her building. Will grabs the handle and opens the door before she even has time to react. _

_ “Door opening, another wooing service.” He offers when she turns to look at him. Frankie is helpless against the eye roll she responds with. Will just smiles. _

_ “I’m not sleeping with you.” Frankie announces in the elevator on the way to her 7th floor apartment.  _

_ “Francesca Rose.” Will gasps.  _

_ “Not my middle name.” _

_ “Do you kiss Jai with that mouth?” Will continues, not responding to her interruption.  _

_ “I kiss a lot of things with this mouth. But I already told you I’m not going to sleep with you.” Frankie counters, then grins when she sees the blood rush to Will’s face. Point Frankie.  _

_ “Mean.” Will mumbles. Frankie’s smile just widens in response. _

_ Will follows Frankie out of the elevator and down the hall to her end unit apartment that overlooks a small park next to the bodega owned by the grumpiest man in New York City. He’s one of Frankie’s favourite people.  _

_ Frankie blocks the door so Will can’t open it for her, earning her a huff and glare from him as she flips on the lights in the small entryway. Will doesn’t follow her in. _

_ “Aren’t you going to…” Frankie starts to ask, but Will is already shaking his head. _

_ “I promised to get you home safely and I did. You’re tired and need some sleep. So I’ll just say goodnight here” _

_ The fact that he’s not staying upsets her in a way she’s not ready to analyse yet. He’s right, she is tired and she does need sleep, but there’s a part of her that really doesn’t want him to leave.  _

_ “I’ll see you at the hospital in the morning. I can bring you breakfast if you want. Maybe some coffee from the place you like near the bar.” _

_ “Yeah, ok.” Frankie responds, still trying to wrap her head around the feeling of loss settling in her chest.  _

_ “Can I hug you?” Will blurts out suddenly, stepping into the apartment and startling Frankie from her self analyses.  _

_ “What?” _

_ Will looks agonized as he voices his request again “We spent the day together and it was perfect Frankie, but then something awful happened and we’ve spent every minute since worrying and traveling and trying to keep it together and I really just want to go back to that moment right before it all went to shit and hold you just a little longer. Can we do that please, just for a minute before I leave you?” _

_ Two days ago Frankie would have laughed at him. She would have called him a dork or mocked him for being so needy. But that was two days ago. Before they spent the day learning more about each other while strolling around Prague, before she decided to try, before the fear of losing Standish to a stab wound half a world away, before the anger over Ollerman’s escape.  _

_ Frankie's world has been turned on its axis in the last 48 hours and when she looks at Will she sees that he feels it too. The look he’s giving her is so damn sincere, his desire to seek comfort in her so clear, she can’t say no. _

_ With a small nod of her head and a relieved sigh from Will, Frankie finds herself standing in the circle of his arms once more, breathing him in and enjoying the feel of his hands running up and down her back.  _

_ When Will pulls back a minute later and presses a soft kiss to her temple, Frankie finds she misses the contact immediately and once again marvels at how he became someone she wants to keep close so quickly.  _

_ “Goodnight, Francesca Marie.” Will says, with a smile and a wink while making his way back towards the door. _

_ “Not even close.” Frankie smirks as she watches him. _

_ His hand is on the knob when he turns to look at her again, a mischievous grin on his face. “Out of curiosity, how’s the wooing working for you so far?” _

_ “Seriously Whiskey?” Frankie says with a laugh. She really can’t believe this is the guy that’s making her stomach ache with need and want.  _

_ “Nah, you’re right I don’t need you to tell me, I know the charm virus is working its magic, I can tell already.” _

_ “Oh can you now?” _

_ “Oh yeah you’re infected for sure. Don’t worry gorgeous, it's going to be wonderful.” _

_ “Get out you dork, I want to go to bed.”  _

_ “Night pretty girl.” Will says, opening the door and flashing her one last smile before walking through it.  _

_ “Night Whiskey.” She responds as she watches him close the door behind him, then immediately misses his presence.  _

_ Damn virus got her for sure.  _

_ ******************** _

_ If they had any hope of keeping the change in their relationship a secret they probably should have done a better job at trying to hide it.  _

_ Jai of course knew within seconds of seeing them and their joined hands at the hospital the night before. Susan probably would have too, if she wasn’t busy trying to keep Ray conscious and relaying Standish’s condition. As it was it took her all of three minutes to figure it out the next morning.  _

_ Will was the last to arrive at the hospital. They’ve been waiting in the lobby down the hall from Standish’s room for the past five minutes and Jai is starting to get grumpy at the delay. _

_ “No respect for the schedule, we had a plan.” Jai mutters as he glares at the doors as if doing so would make Will appear.  _

_ “Relax Jai he’ll be here soon, he probably just got a late start this morning.” Frankie defends. Though why she feels the need to, she doesn’t know.  _

_ Susan arches one eyebrow at the defence while Jai turns his glare towards her. _

_ “Do you know that for a fact Francesca? Talked to him this morning? Seen him perhaps?” Jai questions, suspicion lacing his words.  _

_ “No Jai.” Frankie glares back. Maybe she’s a little grumpy this morning too.  _

_ “Hmmmm” Is Jai’s only response, as the two continue to hold a silent conversation with their locked eyes.  _

_ “Why would she...” Susan starts. _

_ “Morning everyone, I brought coffee and muffins.” Will interrupts Susan’s question, and causes Frankie and Jai to shift their eyes to him. _

_ “You’re late.” Jai accuses, as he’s reaching for a cup.  _

_ “Careful that one’s Frankie’s.” Will says turning the tray so Jai can grab a different cup. “Yours is the one with the green mark on the lid, Susan yours is yellow.” _

_ “Let me guess mine is the pink heart.” Frankie says suspiciously, looking at the two remaining cups.  _

_ “Of course not.” Will scoffs. “I value my life more than that, you get the black one. Mine’s pink.” _

_ Frankie smirks while she takes her cup from him, fingers brushing against his a little more than needed. She would have held on longer, but she can see Susan looking at them appraisingly from the corner of her eye.  _

_ “You went all the way to the place by the bar to get coffee?” Susan questions, still looking curiously between Frankie and Will.  _

_ “Yeah, it’s got that caramel creamer Frankie likes.” Will confirms, not really paying attention to Susan’s answering smirk as he decards the drink tray in the recycling bin close by.  _

_ “I wasn’t sure what everyone wanted so I just got a variety of muffins.” Will continues and offers the box to Jai who snatches it out his hand.  _

_ “Can we go please, visiting hours started 10 minutes ago and Standish has already texted me 27 times.” Jai is antsy again, he doesn't like hospitals, and he really doesn’t like when they veer off schedule.  _

_ In agreement they all move towards the patient rooms. Jai and Susan are a few paces ahead of them as they make their way down the hall, when Frankie feels Will press a bag into her hand.  _

_ “They only had one strawberry rhubarb muffin left, so I asked them to put it in a separate bag to make sure you got it.” Will says quietly with a shy smile. _

_ “Thanks.” Frankie says with a soft smile of her own. _

_ “Did you see I had them use the black marker to draw a little flower on the side of your cup?” Will asks eagerly, clearly trying to earn some wooing points this morning. _

_ “Hmmm very pretty.” Frankie mutters back. No need to let him know the sweet gesture has had too much of an effect on her. _

_ “You’re pretty.” Will fires back quickly. _

_ “I knew it!” Susan exclaims, rounding on them just as they step into the doorway of the room holding the youngest member of the team.  _

_ “Knew what?” Standish asks from his bed. “Where have you been? I’ve been waiting for hours!” _

_ “You’ve only been allowed visitors for 12 minutes.” Jai responds moving into the room, hands already removing the medical chart to read the report for himself. _

_ “Like I said hours, hey where are they going?” Frankie hears Standish ask as Susan pushes both her and Will out of the room. _

_ “You two are sleeping together.” Susan accuses, the second they’re out of the room and earshot of those left behind. _

_ “What no we’re not.” Will denies at the same time Frankie mutters “I tried but he refused.” _

_ Both Susan and Will turn to look at her. Susan with surprise and Will with a look of scandalized disbelief.  _

_ “What? She’s going to figure it out anyway.” Frankie reasons, with a small shrug of her shoulders. She thought about it a lot last night and now realizes she probably should have let Will in on her decision not to hide from the team because he’s looking more than a little confused at the moment.  _

_ “I didn’t think you’d want anyone to know.” Will says softly, while looking at her, confusion and hope shining in his eyes in equal measure.  _

_ “Know what?” Ray asks, appearing seemingly out of nowhere wrapping his arm about Susan’s shoulders, and waving at Standish and Jai inside.  _

_ “I was just trying to figure that out myself.” Susan replies looking back and forth between Will and Frankie.  _

_ “Oh hey are those muffins?” Ray questions, already distracted and pulls a still assessing Susan into the room leaving Will and Frankie alone in the hallway.  _

_ “I won’t lie to our team Will.” Frankie says quietly. “Secrets are how people get hurt. I won’t run around announcing your plan, but I also won’t lie if they ask.”  _

_ Will’s smile is slow to cross his face but when it does Frankie is certain the corners of his lips are going to stretch to his ears.  _

_ “What?” She asks when he doesn’t say anything. _

_ “You do realize that if they know, I’ll use that to my advantage right? I’ll make them help and conspire and you’ll be begging for me to kiss you before you even know what hit you.” Will says, while puffing out his chest and smiling even wider if that’s even possible. _

_ “You think so?”  _

_ “Oh I know so. It’s a done deal pretty girl, you just don’t know it yet.” He confirms while brushing a stray hair from her face. _

_ “So damn cocky.” Frankie murmurs around a smile. _

_ “Sexy right?” Will jokes, then releases a grunt as Frankie elbows him in ribs as she walks by him and into the room with an eye roll.  _

_ The first thing Frankie sees when she walks into the room is Standish, Jai and Ray studying the box of muffins, while Susan watches them with an amused smile. _

_ The first thing she hears is an accusation from Standish. “Jai says you stole the last strawberry rhubarb muffin.” _

_ “I didn’t steal it ,Will gave it to me.” Frankie retorts, dropping into a chair and making a production of opening the bag and taking the sugar glazed muffin out for all to see.  _

_ “Will! I’m the one with the stab wound and you give her the best muffin!” Standish exclaims, then turns serious. “Did she threaten to hit you in the no-no zone? Cause that’s the only reason I can think of for you ignoring my need for that muffin.” _

_ “More like she promised to do something he’ll like to his no-no zone.” Jai mutters with a look of disgust, loud enough for everyone to hear.  _

_ “You already told him?” Will questions her before anyone else can get a word in.  _

_ “I tell him everything.” Frankie admits with a shrug, picking off a piece of her muffin and popping it in her mouth.  _

_ “Everything.” Jai confirms, narrowing his eyes at Will. _

_ “Hold up, these drugs must be making my head go wonky cause it sounds like you're telling me Mum and Dad are bumping uglies and that can’t be right.” Standish says with a dramatic flailing of his arms. _

_ “I think that’s exactly what he’s telling you.” Susan says, a smile growing on her lips. _

_ “Now hold on just settle down everyone, Frankie and I are not making love, nor will we be any time soon.” Will assures them calmly. _

_ “Making love. Such a dork.” Frankie snarks, earning an exasperated look from Will. She just smirks back.  _

_ “Oh that’s right you’re wooing her.” Jai says, with a small grin in her direction.  _

_ “Wooing” Ray snorts the word while grabbing a muffin from the box.  _

_ Standish looks thoughtful for a second then says “Isn’t that an old man word for dating? Cause Frankie doesn’t do that. She’s more of a pump and…” _

_ “Don’t you dare finish that sentence.” Jai cuts him off with an angry glare.  _

_ “Wooing is kinda like pre-dating Standish, and it’s adorable. He’s trying to convince Frankie to agree to date him. Isn’t that right Will?” Susan interjects with a hand on Jai’s arm to keep him from killing Standish.  _

_ “Something like that.” Will mutters. He’s looking at Frankie a little wary now, and crouches down next to her to speak without the others hearing. Not that they’re listening, already focused back on the muffins and arguing over who’s going to get what. _

_ “You sure you’re ok with this?” Will asks softly, one hand coming to rest on her knee, concern flooding his eyes. “I don’t want you to be uncomfortable Frankie, the last thing I want is to pressure you.” _

_ Frankie considers him for a moment. She’s already made up her mind, but she likes that he’s checking with her. She doesn’t love that everyone is going to know their business and be asking a million questions all the time, but she meant what she said she won’t lie to them, she doesn’t want to be that person anymore.  _

_ Things might work out with Will and they might not, but she owes it to both of them to at least try to see if they want to pursue it. And that means being honest even when it’s uncomfortable.  _

_ With a soft exhale Frankie covers his hand with hers and gives it a light squeeze. “I told you to bring it on Whiskey, I expect you to follow through.” She challenges softly. _

_ “Yeah?” Will asks, smile on his face once more.  _

_ “Yeah.” She confirms with a smile of her own.  _

_ “He’s wooing her so she gets the good stuff and we all gotta eat bran muffins?” Standish’s whine breaks through the little bubble she and Will had been living in the last few minutes.  _

_ With a secret smirk meant only for Will, Frankie asks Will if he wants a bite of her muffin loud enough for everyone to hear, breaking off a chunk and holding it out for him.  _

_ She sees a quick glimmer of mischief in his eyes before he leans forward and pulls the piece from her fingers with his mouth. Lips grazing her fingers and sending a rush of warmth through her and pooling low in her belly.  _

_ “Really we gotta watch this now?” Standish whines even louder and throws his head back onto his pillow with a pout.  _

_ “Oh sorry, did you want some too Standish?” Frankie asks, innocently holding out the muffin to him. _

_ With a look of horror Standish is quick to reply “Eww, I don’t want any of your sex muffin that’s gross.”  _

_ Frankie just smiles at him and winks taking a bite of her muffin with zero shame.  _

_ “What’s the over under on how long this will go on for.” Ray asks over the sounds of Standish’s fake vomiting, earning an elbow from Susan. _

_ “Oh I want in on that bet.” Standish perks up, muffin forgotten.  _

_ “Boys” Susan starts, then with a look towards Frankie and Will still crouched close together, his hand on her knee, she smiles and adds, “Oh what the hell, me too.”  _

_ “I’ll make a spreadsheet.” Jai announces, pulling out his phone and earning him a glare from Frankie that he promptly ignores.  _

_ “Put me down for the end of the week Jai, I’ve got a plan.” Will says softly, eyes once again focused on Frankie.  _

_ She can’t wait to find out what the plan is.  _

*********************

Jai is startled awake in the middle of the night by a body slipping into his bed. He hasn’t seen her since he got home after Susan gave him the all clear. He expected her wrath, but she’d locked herself in the bedroom they never bothered to use and still hadn’t come out two hours later when sleep demanded his submission. 

“Nightmare?” He whispers, as she settles in beside him. 

“Memory.” She responds just as softly, scooting a little closer to him. Staring at the ceiling.

“Good or bad?” 

“Both. Standish got stabbed, but I got the best muffin.” 

“Ah yes, he still whines about that on occasion.” Jai comments reaching for her hand and giving it a squeeze. She squeezes back. She’s not mad at him.

“Jai?” Her voice is small and lost and Jai is immediately on edge.

“Yeah”

“Would you still love me no matter what?” Jai can see tears already sliding down her face as she whispers her question. 

“You’re my best friend in the whole world Francesca, nothing you do or say, or have done or said will ever change that. Not ever.” Jai affirms, reaching for her face and turning it towards him as he gently rubs the wetness away. Tears filling his own eyes at the pain he sees in hers.

“It’s bad Jai, I don’t know if you’ll…” Frankie tries but can’t choke out any more words.

“You told me once you didn’t want secrets between us because secrets get people hurt. You’re hurting Francesca, let me keep your secret, let me take away some of that pain.” He begs, heart pounding in fear and sorrow. He’s never seen her this way, not even on the anniversary of her parents death. It scares him. 

“Jai…” Frankie reaches for him and rolls herself into his arms, squeezing in as close as possible as she sobs out her confession.

Jai holds her tightly as he listens to her words, tears falling freely from both of their eyes as she tells him her story. 

He’s still awake at dawn, still holding Frankie close and rubbing her back hours after she hiccuped out endless apologies and pleas for him not to hate her. Hours after she cried herself into a fitful sleep with tear stained cheeks. 

Jai’s eyes are sore and swollen from tears, his heart is broken and rage is burning like fire in his belly. He’s been thinking for hours about hundreds of things, but he’s certain of only two. First, there’s no way in hell he’s ever letting her leave him again and second, someone has to die. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well at least she's told someone! Just not us, not quite yet.


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> All the errors are mine!

Dr. Peers doesn’t release him from the hospital until almost 4pm. Will’s been pacing like a caged animal since noon. Susan, who has volunteered to take him home and get him settled, keeps asking him to sit and relax but he can’t. He’s sick of this place and needs to get home. His parents flew back to Indiana yesterday, his sister’s overdue and they need to be there to watch his niece and nephew when the time comes for a new baby to join the Chase clan. It’s just as well, he loves his parents, but he can’t handle the pitying looks and constant hovering anymore. 

As soon as he’s released he walks as quickly as he’s able out of the hospital, bag of medication he won’t take if he can avoid it in one hand and that tube of found lip balm in the other. He can’t move as fast as he’d like and he’s winded and sweating by the time they get to the taxi stand, but he’s thrilled to be outside and on the way home where he hopes Frankie will be waiting. 

Susan is sitting quietly beside him in the back seat of the cab, holding his duffle bag of personal items he’s accumulated at the hospital over the past three weeks in her lap and resting one hand on his knee to stop it from nervously vibrating on the seat. 

The cab is moving too slowly for his liking. He needs to get home, needs to see her, needs to hold her and kiss her and promise never to make her so angry she runs ever again. He needs her so bad he can’t keep still in his seat, Susan’s hand not nearly strong enough to keep him from bouncing. 

When the cab pulls up to his building Will has the door open before it’s come to a complete stop. He leaves Susan to deal with the driver and is halfway through the lobby before she catches up with him. 

“Will slow down, you’re going to hurt yourself.” Susan admonishes, as soon as she is close enough not to have to yell. 

Will doesn’t respond, just presses the elevator button repeatedly, desperate for it to open. He considers taking the stairs to the 9th floor, but knows he won’t get past the first flight without having to rest so he presses the elevator button once more and prays to every God he can think of for the doors to open. 

“Will?” An overly excited and high pitched voice squeals behind him just as the doors open.

Will steps into the elevator and presses the button for his floor before turning to acknowledge the voice of the woman who pushes her way into the elevator next to him and Susan.

“Hi Nicky.” Will says kindly, but distractedly and without enthusiasm to the woman who lives in the apartment across the hall from his. 

“Where have you been, I’ve missed you so much!” Nicky gushes and grabs hold of his broken arm, cast hidden under his jacket, causing him to wince and groan in pain. 

“Oh gosh I’m so sorry.” Nicky apologizes, releasing his arm quickly before offering up a concerned look and moving one hand to his face. “You’re hurt.”

“He’s recovering nicely.” Susan interjects cooly, moving to stand closer to Will. “He’d do better if no one touches him.” 

“I’m fine Nicky.” Will says, and removes her hand from his face taking a step back and bumping into the rear wall. 

“What happened?” Nicky asks, moving closer to Will and batting her eyes and pouting her lips in an overly dramatic bid at sympathy.

“Just an accident I’m fine.” Will responds kindly, his good hand rising to keep her from getting closer, the overpowering perfume she’s bathed in stinging his nose and eyes.

“Do you need help getting into your apartment?”

“I’m fine thank you, Susan’s here to get me settled.” Will gestures towards Susan who is glaring daggers at Nicky.

“After she leaves though, you might need help.” Nicky says, completely ignoring Susan’s existence.

“I’ll be fine.”

Nicky continues on as though he hadn’t spoken “I’m just saying that since that stupid bitchy ex of yours cheated on you and left you high and dry you might need someone to help you get back to that peak physical form of yours, you know cook for you, rub your sore muscles...help you in the shower.” Nicky trails off in a suggestive tone while licking her lips and looking him up and down. 

Will is just about to respond that she will absolutely not be helping him with any of that, and if she ever speaks that way about Frankie again she’ll be wishing she hadn’t, when Susan steps in and lets her very impressive Spanish temper fly. 

“She didn’t cheat on him and he’s fine, he’ll be looked after don’t you worry your pretty little bleach blonde head about it.”

“By you?” Nicky asks, with a snide look and raised eyebrows. 

“By anyone other than you, honey.” Susan responds with a glint in her eye that makes Will more than certain he needs to step in and defuse the building tension. 

“Ok, thanks for the offer Nicky but I think I’ve got it covered.” He says cooly, stepping out of the elevator when it opens on his floor and pulling Susan behind him. Unfortunately Nicky follows. 

“If you change your mind you know where I live, and if memory serves you have my number saved in your phone.” Glaring at Susan and giving Will a predatory look, Nicky continues, “I’m right across the hall Agent Sexy, just yell and I’ll come over and help make you feel all better.” Then with a wink and a kiss blown in his direction Nicky opens her apartment door and closes it behind her with a slam. 

“Wow.” Is all Will can say.

“If you call her I’ll finish what that car started.” Susan says sharply, snapping her fingers in Will face to pull his attention back to her. 

“No worries there.” Will responds, pulling his keys out of his pocket and taking a deep breath before unlocking the door and pushing it open. 

The light outside is fading leaving the apartment blanketed in long shadows and dark corners. It smells stale and stuffy from being closed up so long and there’s a layer of dust on every surface. Everything is exactly how he left it. Dishes in the sink, blue blanket and pillow on the couch, coffee cup half full on the counter. Christmas tree standing in the corner months after the holiday has passed, her present still unopened underneath. Nothing out of place. 

Will moves further into the apartment and down the small hall to the bedroom and bathroom beyond, checking both before returning to the living room and the grief filled face of his best friend. 

“You thought she’d be here.” Susan says softly, tears in her eyes.

Will just shrugs and moves to sit on the couch. “I hoped.” He admits softly, leaning back into the cushions and closing his eyes against the tears that flood them.

“Oh sweetie.” Susan mutters, and moves to sit beside him, wrapping her arms around his shoulders. 

Will lets her hug him for just a moment before the pull to hold on to the dream of Frankie becomes too strong to resist. Reaching sideways, Will opens the drawer of the end table and grabs the small box within. With a sad sigh he opens it slowly and stares at the ring resting inside. “I just thought she’d be here you know. That she would have come for me.” 

“She did Will. She sat by your bedside every night for two weeks watching over you.” Susan admits softly, looking torn about telling him. 

It’s the first time his suspicions have been confirmed. He should be elated, he should be jumping for joy. But he just feels confused and lost. 

“She doesn’t want me to know.” He concludes softly. He thinks that might hurt more than her not coming at all. 

Susan doesn’t say anything in response, just rubs his back and holds the casted hand not holding the ring while he tries to figure out what to do next, or if he should do anything at all. 

“You’ve seen her?” He asks after a minute. 

“Yeah.”

“How does she look?”

“About as good as you.”

Will closes his eyes against the image of Frankie looking as weak and fragile as he knows he looks, he’s only ever seen her look that way once before; the day she walked out of his life. He’s done everything possible not to picture her like that everyday since. Knowing she still looks that way four months later breaks his heart all over again. 

“She didn’t know about the ring Will.” Susan says softly, interrupting the painful image. 

“What?” Will opens his eyes and looks at Susan in surprise. 

“She asked me if you really had one, Jai must have told her. She didn’t know. That’s not why she left.”

“Did she tell you why?” He just needs to know, he needs to know what happened. 

Susan shakes her head at him softly. “She wouldn’t tell me, hasn’t told Jai either from what I understand. All she said was that it would be better for you if she was gone and you forgot about her, that you’d hate her if she stayed.”

“I could never...why would she think…” Will tries but can’t come up with a reason that he could ever hate her. 

But then something Nicky said in the elevator plays through his mind and though the bile in his stomach rises at even the thought of it he can’t help but ask anyway. “What Nicky said in the elevator...you don’t think she...there wasn’t someone...that she was with someone…” He can’t get the words out, the idea too painful, the thought too devastating to even voice. 

“No Will,” Susan counters immediately, “I may not know the reason why but I know there’s no way she would have cheated on you, not for anything. She loves you, she’d never do anything like that, you know that.”

“I thought I did…” He says softly.

But he does know that and he hates himself for even thinking to ask it. It’s the one reason he hasn’t let cross his mind in four months. He feels guilty for even suggesting it. But he’s at a loss, for months he’s held onto the idea that it was the ring that angered her or spooked her into running. Now he doesn’t know what to think. 

“What do I do Susan?”

“I don’t know sweetie. I wish I did, I wish I had an answer for you. I wish there was a way I could make the pain stop. For both of you. She’s in pain Will, she’s hurting and she’s scared and she’s feeling guilty but until she’s ready to talk there’s not much to do. You can’t force her honey, she’s got to make the first move.”

Will knows Susan’s right, but he’s been waiting for almost four month and he needs to start doing something. If he could just get to her, let her yell at him or hit him or do whatever it is she needs to do for her to be able to open up to him, maybe then they could start to fix whatever it is that’s broken. 

“Do you know where she is?” 

“I know where she was, but I’m not sure if she’s still there.”

“Jai’s.” 

Susan doesn’t confirm it, but it’s really not a question. If she’s still in the city that’s where she’ll be. Jai is her safety net, for a while he was too. 

Will lays his head on the back of the couch trying to figure out what to do next, the ring that he still hopes holds his future, firmly in his grasp. 

Susan stays for over an hour. Fussing around the apartment, ordering him some food, cleaning, organizing, doling out pills and sorting his medications, making sure he has everything he needs within reach. 

“You want me to stay here with you tonight? Make sure you’re ok and settled, you look exhausted.” Susan asks for the third time, clearly worried about him.

“I’m fine Suz I promise. Go home to Ray, I’m just going to lay here on the couch and try to sleep a bit.” 

“You want me to help you into bed?”

“I’m good here on the couch, I might watch a movie for a bit, thank you though.”

“Call me if you need anything.” Susan implores, still looking warily at him.

“I will.”

“I mean it Will, you call me. If I hear you called that hussy across the hall…”

“I won’t Suz, I promise.” Will says with a laugh, stretching out on the couch, pulling the blanket from the armrest overtop of him and closing his eyes. He’s refused to take anything more than Tylenol 3s for the past week, but even they are making him dopey after a day of more physical activity than he’s seen in nearly a month. 

He hears Susan sigh softly and feels her press her hand to his head. “Promise me you’ll wait until at least tomorrow before you go looking for her.”

Opening his eyes Will sees the concern on Susan’s face and makes his promise to wait. But only until morning. He needs to clean himself up before she sees him, and he needs to rest before he chases her. She’s fast, he needs to be ready so he can be faster. 

*********************

Will’s been awake since 5am. But he waits until 9am to leave his apartment. Frankie is not a morning person and if she’s still at Jai’s, he doesn’t want to make things worse by waking her up before she’s ready. History has taught him that waking her up when she wants to be sleeping never ends well, and she’s already going to be on edge when she sees him.

He showered as soon as he woke. It was a slow and painful process but the feel of a real shower after a three week hospital stay felt so nice he stayed under the spray until the water ran cold. There wasn’t much he could do about his hair, but his face he could manage. It was a little rough with only one fully operational hand but he managed to get a mostly decent shave and only nicked himself twice. 

After dressing in jeans and his grey FBI sweater, Will sat at the table nursing a coffee and watched the clock’s hands circle it’s face as he waited. 

At exactly 9am Will put his mug in the sink, ignored the dose of pain pills Susan laid out for him, grabbed his wallet and keys and walked out the door. It was time to find her, and if he was lucky enough bring her home. 

He takes a cab to Jai's. It's not far and he’d usually walk, but he knows he’s got to climb six flights of stairs once he gets there and doesn’t want to exhaust himself and have to stop more than once on the way up. 

He remembers the first time he went to Jai’s, feeling like a teenager picking up his date for prom only instead of a protective father, Will had to contend with a very protective and potentially lethal Jai. 

*******************************

_ They’ve been officially dating for almost a month and he’d been wooing her for the six weeks before that. They’ve kissed, cuddled, and shared a bed more than once. They’ve pretty much done everything together for the past few weeks, but they still haven’t crossed that last physical barrier.  _

_ Will has a feeling they’re both more than ready to cross that line, but they’re also nervous about rushing it and ruining the good thing they’ve got going.  _

_ He’s learned a lot about Frankie over the last few months; she loves to read in her downtime and always has at least three books on the go, she can finish a 1000 piece puzzle in under two hours, she’s Ivy League smart and kills at trivia, and she makes the world's best banana bread.  _

_ But nothing has surprised him more than finding out how soft, tender and physically affectionate she is when they’re alone. It was almost like a switch had been flipped inside her as soon as she made the decision to be with him on that corner in Little Italy.  _

_ Will had expected to be the physically expressive one in their relationship and in front of others he usually is. She still snarks at him, rolls her eyes and calls him sappy when he tells her she’s pretty at the bar, opens doors for her at the Hive, or carries her bags on missions.  _

_ But when they’re alone she seems to always find excuses to touch him, pull him closer and press herself against him. She doesn’t hesitate to wrap herself around him, hold his hand or even kiss him whenever the whim strikes her, and Will couldn’t be happier.  _

_ Tonight he’s taking her to a movie soundtrack concert in the park. She’ll say she hates it and call him a hopeless romantic, but he knows she’ll be leaning into his side and whispering in his ear with a smile on her lips when she does, so he’s looking forward to it. _

_ He just has to collect her from Jai’s apartment first. Something he’s not totally looking forward to.  _

_ He’s not scared of Jai per say. It’s just that since he and Frankie started dating, Jai has been eyeing him with a little more suspicion than previously and Will is far too aware of Jai’s specialized skill set not to be at little wary at being watched that closely.  _

_ It’s been a week since they got back from Spain and Frankie is fully recovered. But she’s also currently homeless, her upstairs neighbour having flooded Frankie into unexpected renovations.  _

_ Will offered to let her stay with him but she shyly rejected him saying she already made arrangements to stay with Jai for the week. Finding excuses to spend a night sleeping next to each other here and there was fine, but she still wanted to go slow. A full week of nights pressed against each other in the same bed would be moving a lot faster than turtles in peanut butter could run, she reminded him, but softened the rejection with a lingering kiss so it still felt like a win.  _

_ They haven’t spent the night together since she moved into Jai’s place the day after they got home. That was five days ago and while they still see each other every day at the bar and have had dinner together more nights than not, he misses her when they’re not together. More than is probably normal this early in a relationship. He wants to tell her how much and beg her to come stay with him, but he promised her slow and he’s going to stick to it.  _

_ So here he stands outside Jai’s apartment ready to knock and feeling like he’s about to ask if his girlfriend can come out to play if he promises to have her home by curfew.  _

_ He doesn’t have the chance to knock fully before Jai is opening the door and giving him an appraising look. “William” He says, with a slight edge to his voice Will doesn’t completely understand.  _

_ “Hey Jai. Just here to pick up Frankie if she’s ready.” Will says with a big smile and friendly tone, hoping to soothe whatever is making Jai eye him up especially hard tonight.  _

_ “Mmmhmm.” Is the only reply Jai offers as he steps aside to let him in.  _

_ “Nice place.” Will comments as he looks around, taking in the living room, kitchen and a series of closed doors down the hall. “I love the big windows with all the natural light. And this kitchen is fantastic. How many bedrooms?” _

_ “Two. But one has never been used." Jai answers with a slight gleam in his eye and smirk on his lips.  _

_ “Never used? Frankie’s sleeping in here?” Will asks, slightly baffled as he looks at the small couch and chair, neither of which seem like they would be a comfortable fit for Frankie’s long frame.  _

_ “Nope.” Jai says, smirk growing.  _

_ “So you’re sleeping in here?” Will questions hopefully, although he’s pretty sure he already knows what the answer will be.  _

_ “Nope.” There’s an almost manic glee shining in Jai’s eyes now as he watches Will process the fact that he’s sharing bed with the woman who just two days ago didn’t punch him when he referred to her as his girlfriend.  _

_ “Jai are you being nice?” Comes Frankie’s teasingly firm voice as she exits one of the hallway doors, pulling it closed again behind her and drawing both men’s attention.  _

_ “Nope.” Jai says with a laugh. “But I am enjoying myself very much.” _

_ “I’m sure you are.” Frankie acknowledges, as she continues to walk closer to Will, eyes shining bright.  _

_ “Hi.” Will says, softly as soon as she’s close enough for him to brush a stray hair off her face. Sleeping arrangements forgotten. He knows there’s nothing to worry about anyway. Frankie already told him she and Jai usually share a bed when they’re together, old habits she explained. _

_ “Hi.” Frankie murmurs back just as softly, and raises up on her toes slightly to kiss the corner of his mouth, something she does to greet him when they’re alone. And apparently in front of Jai now too.  _

_ She’s wearing jeans, that green tank top he’ll always associate with when they ate gelato together that first time, and ballerina flats on her feet that allow her to fit perfectly under his chin as she wraps her arms around his waist and breathes him in. She’s absolutely gorgeous, and when she pulls back she looks at him in a way that leaves him wondering what he’s done to get so lucky.  _

_ “Francesca you know how I feel about pheromones so close to the furniture.” Jai interrupts Will’s wondering. _

_ “Yes Jai.” Frankie laughs, moving slightly away from Will to appease her forever protector, but reaching for his hand and weaving their fingers together and squeezing softly before quickly letting go. _

_ “I just need to grab my bag and we can go on whatever sickeningly sweet adventure you have planned for the night.” Frankie says, with a wink and moves down the hallway and out of sight once more.  _

_ “Pheromones?” Will questions, turning back to Jai. _

_ “They’re a bitch to get out of the fabric.” Jai nods, with such a serious expression on his face that Will can’t tell if he’s joking or not.  _

_ “Ready.” Frankie announces, returning to Will’s side and tangling their fingers again. _

_ “You sure?” Jai asks softly, eyes zeroed in on Frankie. _

_ Will feels her squeeze his fingers and looks down to find her giving him the soft look she usually only wears when they’re alone. “Yeah, I’m sure.” She says softly, turning her eyes back to Jai.  _

_ Jai breathes out a long sigh and nods slightly. “I’ll see you Monday then.” _

_ “You going away for the weekend Jai?” Will asks, then immediately feels like he’s said the wrong thing when they both turn to look at him with blank expressions.  _

_ “It’s just that it’s Friday and I didn’t know if you…” Will trails off as he takes in Jai’s exasperated look and Frankie’s grin of amusement.  _

_ Will is narrowing his eyes trying to decode their reactions when he notices the bag slung over Frankie’s shoulder. It’s not a handbag or purse. It’s a backpack. Not just any backpack, her father’s old beat up canvas bag. The one she never travels without. The one that she’s carried with her since she was 15 and headed to Ireland on her own for the first time. The one that’s big enough to hold a weekend's worth of clothes and toiletries.  _

_ “Oh.” Is all he can say, when he fits the puzzle pieces together in what he hopes is the right way, his heart suddenly beating wildly in his chest.  _

_ Frankie snorts. _

_ Jai mumbles something that sounds suspiciously like “idiot” under this breath and shakes his head. _

_ A million things are running through Will’s mind, the multitude of ways this weekend could play out floating around behind his eyes, each making him blush more than the one before. He’s frozen under the weight of endless possibilities and clearly it’s dulling his ability to communicate because he couldn’t form a coherent word if he tired.  _

_ “He really isn’t that bright is he?” Jai mutters to Frankie, when Will still hasn’t said anything a few seconds later.  _

_ “Be nice, he’s trying to figure out if this means he’s going to get lucky.” Frankie scolds Jai softly, then leans up to kiss Will on the cheek and whispers “so lucky” into his ear, soft enough for only him to make out.  _

_ Will snaps out of his daze with a shudder at her words and squeezes her hand tightly in response earning him a smile.  _

_ “We should go” Frankie says softly, adjusting the bag on her shoulder and turning to Jai leaning forward to brush her lips over this cheek, before pulling Will towards the door.  _

_ “Be good Francesca.” _

_ “Never.” Frankie promises with a quick grin, and getting yet another exasperated look from Jai in response.  _

_ “William.” Jai says, with a nod in his direction.  _

_ “Jai.” Will nods back, before eagerly following Frankie out the door, down six flights of stairs and out of the building into the hot summer air.  _

_ “Where to Whiskey?” Frankie asks, with a smile once they reach the sidewalk fingers still entwined. _

_ He reaches up to twirl a stray curl around his finger while he tells her all about this evening's plans of dinner and music in the park followed by a stroll along the waterfront. Very romantic he assures her when she rolls her eyes at him while he tells her that New York at night is almost as pretty as she is.  _

_ “That all sounds pretty impressive Whiskey.” _

_ “You think so?” Will asks, wrapping his arms around her waist and pulling her close. _

_ “Mmmhmm.” Frankie confirms, looping her arms around his neck and pulling herself onto her toes, face moving so close her lips brush against his when she continues. “But I was kinda hoping we could go to your place and order Chinese instead.” _

_ Swallowing hard, Will tries to regulate his heart rate at her words and the clear intention behind them, before nodding eagerly unable to form an appropriate verbal response at the moment.  _

_ Frankie grins widely and presses her lips to his for a kiss that’s far too short in Will’s opinion before pulling back, but not going far. _

_ “Whiskey?”  _

_ “Hmmm.” Will hums, leaning forward to press his lips against hers again.  _

_ “I’m disappointed in you.”  _

_ The words catch Will off guard and have him pulling back quickly as he begins searching her eyes for the possible reason behind them. Finding only humour and mischief in the emerald of her eyes he struggles to come to a conclusion.  _

_ Taking pity on him Frankie explains with a smirk. “You promised me that Wooing by Whiskey was a full service operation and that you would never give it up. But here I am, having carried this bag down six flights of stairs and still holding it after it was expressly promised that you would do all the bag holding.” Fake seriousness crosses her face, and a small sigh escapes her pouted lips. “It’s just so sad that the level of wooing service has dropped off just as I was about to reward all your hard work and dedication to the cause with a weekend long not so innocent slumber party. I’m disappointed Whiskey, I was really looking forward to this weekend.” Heaving out a dramatic sigh and shaking her head softly, Frankie concludes her complaint as though devastated by this turn of events.  _

_ The smile she’s trying to hide assures Will she’s teasing, but he’ll play along just the same. He loves when she teases him, especially about his dedication to earning her affection, she always smiles when she does it, he loves that smile.  _

_ “I’m so sorry you feel that way, and please accept my humblest of apologies. I was just distracted thinking about how many egg rolls I’m going to have to order to make sure I actually get one this time.” He teases, while removing the bag from her shoulder and slinging it over his as he turns her towards his apartment, wrapping an arm around her now empty shoulders and pressing a kiss to her temple.  _

_ A small laugh escapes her lips as she wraps her arm around his waist and slips her hand into his back pocket. “At least four Whiskey, we’re going to need the energy for what I’ve got planned.” She responds, pressing her lips to the side of his neck as they walk.  _

_ “Four it is Francesca Nicole.” _

_ “Give it up Whiskey, you’re never going to figure it out.” Frankie comments with a laugh, tucking herself a little closer to his side. _

_ “We’ll see.” He says softly, pressing another kiss to her temple as they stop at the crosswalk.  _

_ He orders six egg rolls. Then six more when they don’t leave the apartment for the rest of the weekend.  _

_ Best slumber party ever.  _

************************

It takes Will almost 30 minutes to climb the six floors needed to land him on Jai’s doorstep. It takes two more to slow down his breathing enough to let go of the railing that was holding him up and move on unsteady legs to the door.

His knuckles hit the door three times before he hears the lock turn, his heart beating wildly in his chest at the thought of who could be behind it. 

When the door opens to reveal a rumpled and haggard looking Jai, his heart stops cold. Jai never looks disheveled, something’s wrong. 

“Will” Jai greets him with a tone and look that Will can’t quite decipher, but it’s out of character enough to add to his growing unease. 

“Is she here?” He just needs to know. 

“Come in before you fall down.” Jai says, reaching for Will and letting him lean on him while he leads him into the apartment and onto the couch. 

“Jai please just tell me.” Will begs, feeling lightheaded, from the stairs or being so close to where Frankie might be he doesn’t know. 

“She’s not here.” Jai mutters, then walks to the kitchen to get Will a glass of water, pressing it into his hands and taking a seat beside him. 

Jai is muttering something about timing and stubbornness and a plan but it’s too quiet to hear over the ringing in Will’s ears and the cracking of his heart.  _ She’s gone again. _

Will can feel the tears in his eyes and the grief pressing in on his chest when Jai’s voice calling his name brings him back into focus. 

“She’s not gone Will, not yet, she’s just not here.”

“What?” Will asks, trying to figure out what Jai’s telling him. 

“Go home Will.” Jai says firmly, looking him in the eye while he does. 

Will’s heard those words from Jai before, said with the same weight as he’s saying them now and for a moment he’s standing back in the bar the day his world imploded. The day he came home from Washington and walked into the bar not knowing Frankie wasn’t there. Not knowing she never would be again. 

He remembers everything from those first moments in the bar starting with how serious Ray looked while talking quietly on the phone when he walked in, to how Standish joked about how Frankie called and said she would be late so he ate her muffin that morning, to how confused Susan looked when he said he had no idea why Frankie wasn’t there. But it’s the look on Jai’s face when he walked in a few minutes later and told him to go home that Will thinks he’ll always remember. Jai didn’t have to say anything more than that for Will to know he had to obey. 

Jai didn’t say anything more than that then, and he doesn't need to now either. Will knows where he has to go and he knows what will be waiting for him when he does. 

She’s there. 

He’s moving to get off the couch and go when Jai’s hand on his arm stops him. “Hold on a minute and I’ll help you get down the stairs without hurting yourself further.” He doesn’t wait for a response disappearing down the hall before Will can fully rise from the couch. 

Will’s not waiting, he’s waited long enough. He’s out the door and down the first flight of stairs before Jai catches up and helps him the rest of the way down. 

Will is breathing heavy and lifting his arm to hail a cab before he turns to look at Jai once more and freezes, arm dropping to his side. 

Jai is standing next to him with a pained look and Frankie’s backpack. 

“I wouldn’t let her take it with her when she left this morning, only way I could be sure she’d come back.” He says softly, looking guilty as he hands the bag to Will. “She’s scared Will, she’s scared and drowning in guilt, prove to her she doesn’t need to be. Prove to her that it’s safe to unpack, and that she should do it at home with you.”

Will takes the bag from Jai with shaky hands. He doesn’t like the idea of holding it hostage, but the temptation to do just that if it means she’ll talk to him overrides his rational mind and he holds the bag close breathing in her scent that clings to it. 

“After you...when she…it wasn’t her fault Will...when you find out...” Jai begins, stumbling over his words, clearly trying to tell Will something but trying hard not to do so at the same time. With a deep breath, Jai finds his words, straightens his shoulders, fists his hands and lifts his eyes to meet Will’s with a cold and calculated look. “When you’re done you come back here and we’ll make a plan. Or I’ll take care of it myself. Either way it will be handled.”

Will is trying to decipher Jai’s meaning when a cab pulls up and Jai pulls the door open for Will to get in, closes it again once he’s settled into the seat and moves back into the building without a backward glance. 

Will thinks about Jai’s words the whole ride back to his place but forgets them when the cab pulls up to his building. 

Nicky is leaving when he comes in and tries to talk to him but Will just pushes himself into the elevator she exited from, presses the button for his floor and watches as the doors close on her disgruntled face.

Less than a minute later he’s opening the door to his apartment and calling her name but getting no response in return. 

His heart drops through the floor when she’s not sitting on the couch or in the kitchen and he’s kicking himself for being too slow to get back here or even leaving in the first place when the scent of her vanilla perfume tickles his nose. 

“You’re here. Please don’t hide. I know you’re here.” He says to the empty room. Praying he’s right and he hasn’t missed her again. 

“If I didn’t want you to know I was here, you wouldn’t know.” Comes a voice not heard in this apartment in far too many weeks.

Turning towards the hall leading to his bedroom, he sees her for the first time in months and he’s suddenly not able to pull air into his lungs. 

“Hey Whiskey.” She says in a whisper that he can barely hear from across the room. 

_ She’s home. _


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here we go folks. Seatbelts please!

Jai doesn’t leave Frankie’s side the day after she whispered her confession. She’s pretty sure he thinks she’ll run again if he takes his eyes off her. 

She hasn’t decided yet if that’s true.

When she woke up, still exhausted that morning he was right beside her, fingers of one hand laced though hers and drumming rhythmically on his chest with the others, a clear sign that he’s deep in thought. 

“Jai.” She calls his attention softly with a sleep roughened voice.

With a flinch of surprise he turns to her and she can read the look in his sleep deprived eyes immediately. This is exactly why she left, she doesn’t want him to look at her like that. She doesn’t want anyone to look at her like that. 

“Stop.” He says sharply and grabs her arm when she tries to move away. “You don’t get to run anymore Francesca, not from me.”

“Then stop looking at me like that.” She snaps back just as sharply, falling back against her pillow and staring at the ceiling. 

The both lay there quietly for a moment before he reaches out and guides her face to look at him the same way he did when she slipped into his bed the night before. “I meant what I said last night. I love you Frankie I always will, knowing why you left, why you felt you had to hide from me, doesn’t change that. I’m just sad you didn’t know that before you left me behind.” Jai insists with such sincerity that Frankie feels tears well her eyes for what seems like the hundredth time in the past twelve hours. 

“I knew Jai, I promise I did. But I also knew what you would do about it. What I know you stayed up all night planning. I didn’t want to put that burden on you. It’s not yours to carry Jai. I did this, it’s my fault no one else's.” 

“Francesca.” Jai breathes, clearly upset by her words. 

“Please Jai, please. Promise me you won’t do anything.” Frankie begs, she needs him to promise her. Jai won’t break a promise he makes her. 

“Promise me you won’t leave.” Jai counters, knowing she won’t break a promise to him either.

But she can’t make that promise. She knows she can’t keep it. 

She knows that’s why he won’t promise either.

“Jai...” Frankie sighs, shaking her head and closing her eyes against his purposeful stare. 

“I need you to tell him.” Jai insists quietly.

“He’ll hate me. He’s a good man, and he’s noble, and loyal to a fault so he’ll say he won’t but he will. Maybe not right away but he will.” Frankie rolls back to look at the ceiling, her voice shaking slightly at the thought. 

“He won’t Frankie, knowing isn’t going to make him love you any less, you need to trust that. Trust him.” 

“He’ll be angry.”

“Probably. So am I. But not with you.”

“There’s no one else to be angry with Jai. I fucked up no one else, this is on me. It’s my fault.”

“It’s not your fault Francesca. You need to stop blaming yourself. This guilt that you’re carrying, it’s killing you. And you not being here, it’s killing him.” 

Jai squeezes her hand and crawls out of bed when she doesn’t respond, heading to the kitchen to make coffee and leaving Frankie alone with her thoughts. 

It’s a quiet day. They don’t go anywhere or do much of anything, both lost in their own thoughts. Hers of guilt, shame, and fear. His of anger, revenge and planning. Both on edge at the idea of Will being released and what that means for Frankie’s future.

Jai gets a text from Susan when they leave the hospital and then again just after 8pm. Will is home, settled, and knows where Frankie is. He made Susan a promise not to try to find her until the morning. 

“He’s going to come looking for you.” Jai says quietly after reading the text to Frankie.

“I know.” Frankie acknowledges in a barely audible whisper. He promised not to come for her until tomorrow, her Eagle Scout never breaks his promises. She has a few more hours to make her decision. 

She thinks about it while she takes a shower that night. She thinks about it when she crawls in bed and pulls the blankets to her chin. She thinks about it as she listens to Jai’s soft snoring and restless muttering while he sleeps. And she thinks about it while she slips her coffee the next morning.

She knows what she has to do. She has to be brave, just one last time. For him. She has to be brave enough to let him go for good. Brave enough to ensure he lets her go as well. 

She just doesn’t want to do it. 

“What do I say to him?” She asks Jai softly once she’s told him of her decision. 

“The truth. Just tell him the truth Francesca.” Jai responds, walking her to the door of his apartment. 

“The truth.” Frankie repeats, the very idea of it making it feel like her stomach is twisting in knots. But she grabs her backpack and heads for the door anyway.

“Leave the bag here, you won’t need it.” Jai says, taking the old backpack out of her hands and holding it securely in his arms. She won’t run without it, he knows that. 

“And if you’re wrong?” Frankie challenges softly. 

“Then when you’re done you come back here and I’ll pack my bag and we’ll run together. Ride or die Francesca, you won’t be alone anymore.” Jai vows, and Frankie knows without a doubt that it’s true. She won’t be alone. She feels the tension in her shoulders ease just a fraction. 

“I love you Jai.”

“I love you too, Frankie. Go get your Boy Scout.”

“Eagle Scout.” Frankie corrects without thinking. 

Jai just smiles and opens the door for her. 

It’s time for her to face him.

**********************

Frankie waits for the elevator of Will’s apartment building trying to steady her breathing and slow her heart rate at the idea of seeing him. Of telling him and watching him understand just how horrible a person she truly is. 

Would she see hatred and disgust immediately, or would it build as the truth of her sins settle in? Would he lash out at her and wish she never came back, or go a step further and wish he never promised her a future at all? Would he regret not killing her in Moscow, or leaving his mark on her when he saved her life in France?

Running her fingers over that very scar, a smaller voice in the back of her head gets louder, drowning out her fears and starts to fill her mind with sweeter what ifs. 

What if Jai and Susan are right and he’ll forgive her and love her in spite of her recklessness and stupidity. What if he tells her he doesn’t care what she’s done and he loves her anyway. 

What if he means it. 

“Well fuck me, you’re back.” A voice interrupts Frankie’s what if’s when the doors slide open and a bleach blonde with a sour face appears. 

“Nicky.” Frankie greets, without emotion as she pushes past her into the elevator and presses the button for Will’s floor. 

“I can’t believe you’re showing your face here after what you did.” Nicky snarls. 

“Excuse me?” Frankie asks, feeling the hair on the back of her neck rise in annoyance. 

“Don’t try to play innocent. I know what you did to Will, I know you used him and then left him when you got bored.”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.” Frankie states, trying to remain calm. 

“You cheated on Will with that Indian man, I saw you. I saw you together more than once. I told Will you know, I told him you were a whore and he deserved better. He was sad for a minute but I helped him get over it. You know what they say, the best way to get over someone is to get under someone new.” Nicky smirks like the cat who ate the canary, and Frankie isn’t sure if she wants to smack her or laugh in her face at the obvious lie. 

When Frankie doesn’t respond with anything more than a raised eyebrow Nicky purses her lips, winks at Frankie and adds “It worked.” 

“Did it now.” Frankie says cooly with narrowed eyes. She’s not mad, but she is curious to see how far Nicky will take this. 

“Oh yeah. He doesn’t need you, I’m taking care of him.” Nicky lies through her teeth while flipping her hair over her shoulder. “I’m taking care of all his needs now. Every. Last. One.”

“Wow Nicky, all his needs? Well then you must be absolutely devastated to find out that after only 12 hours of being home he’s called me back to replace you. Don’t worry though, I bet if you went and stood on the street corner out there you might be able to find someone to help you improve your technique.” Frankie shoots back, and enjoys the shocked look on Nicky’s face as the doors open and she steps into the hall.

“You fucking bitch.” Nicky seethes behind her, making Frankie grin in response. 

“Have a lovely day Nicky, it’s been great catching up.” Frankie says dismissively, waving her fingers at the very angry mean girl.

“He’s not here. He left about an hour ago.” Nicky shouts and chases after Frankie. 

Frankie falters slightly at her words but doesn’t show it. He went looking for her while she came for him. Fuck their timing sucks. She knows Jai will send him back though, she’ll be waiting when he arrives. If she leaves now she’s not sure she'll be brave enough to come back. 

Determined to get away from Nicky as quickly as possible to avoid an assault charge, Frankie reaches into her hair and pulls out a bobby pin and starts working on the lock of Will’s apartment. She has a key but it’s in her backpack at Jai’s, it didn’t occur to her that she might need it. 

“You can’t just go in there you don’t live here. Oh my God, you’re picking the lock! You’re breaking in! I’m calling security!’ Nicky is screeching behind her and punching numbers into her phone. 

“Go ahead, my name’s on the lease.” Frankie responds, pushing open the door and slamming it in Nicky’s wide eyed disbelieving face. 

Frankie stands facing the closed door listening to Nicky argue over the phone with the security company on the other side and smiles slightly when Nicky’s wail of injustice echoes down the hall when it’s confirmed. Frankie’s name is on the lease right next to Will’s. This is her home too. Or it was going to be on the first of the year if she hadn’t run just a few days before. 

*****************

_ Frankie watches the two most important men in her life square off in the corner of the bar while she sits nursing a beer and enjoying the show from a booth across the room. “Ridiculous”, she mutters into the bottle neck, taking a sip to hide a smile and hopefully drown the warm feeling spreading in her chest. She’s not sappy, she’s supposed to be hard and tough and jaded, there’s no reason she should feel so much happiness watching these two men fight over her honour. _

__

_Stupid charm virus.  
_

_ “What are they bickering about now?” Susan asks, slipping into the booth across from Frankie. _

_ “Will and I are moving in together when my lease is up at the end of the month. I told Jai this morning and now I’m pretty sure they’re negotiating my dowry.” Frankie says, with an eye roll and matching grin, she can’t help it, she’s too happy.  _

_ “Oh yeah, you come with something good?” Susan asks with a raised eyebrow.  _

_ “I’ve got a great toaster.” Frankie answers with a shrug.  _

_ “Four slice?” _

_ “Oh yeah, with extra wide slots for bagels.” _

_ “Impressive. Coffee machine?”  _

_ “French press.” _

_ Susan whistles softly. “Damn, maybe I should throw my hat into the ring, I like fancy coffee.” Frankie laughs softly in response, then louder when she sees Jai wagging his finger at Will like a mother scolding a toddler for misbehaving. _

_ Forty minutes later, after she and Susan have discussed ideas for Christmas gifts, moving arrangements, the upcoming agency mandated recertifications and next week's big mission, Frankie is more than ready to let Will take her home and do things to her that would horrify her self-proclaimed guardian.  _

_ “If the two of you are done negotiating my living arrangements, I’d like to go home. I’m hungry and tired and I have to get up early to run because apparently that’s a thing we need to prove we can do now.” Frankie hollers across the bar, annoyed about having to get up early more than anything else.  _

_ “You get to deal with her if she’s cranky in the morning. Spoiler alert; she will be. She’s always cranky in the morning. Every. Single. Morning.” Jai says, smiling at Will with glee as they dutifully approach and prepare to leave for the evening.  _

_ “Every morning? I didn’t agree to that.” Will insists, even as he moves his arm to run a soothing hand over Frankie’s back.  _

_ “It was implied when you asked her to move in.” Jai counters.  _

_ “Susan said she’d take me.” Frankie pipes in, standing up and slipping into the coat Will is holding out for her.  _

_ “I heard about the toaster.” Susan offers.  _

_ “Forget it. I’ve already made room on the counter, the toaster is mine. Even if it means I have to learn to manage a cranky Frankie.” Will teases, threading his fingers through Frankie’s and pulling her towards the door.  _

_ “I’ll train you quickly Whiskey, don’t worry.” Frankie murmurs, as they wave goodbye and walk out of the bar.  _

_ “Not a worry in the world with you right beside me every night, Francesca Berneice.”  _

_ “My parents didn’t hate me Will.” Frankie snorts, slipping her hand into his back pocket to keep her fingers warm. That’s the only reason she’ll admit to out loud anyway.  _

_ Will just laughs and presses a kiss to her temple, wrapping an arm around her and pulling her closer to help fight off the December wind.  _

_ As warned, she was very cranky when she had to get up and run the next morning. But Will was able to handle her just fine. Just fine indeed.  _

_ Both tired and aching in all the right places he stood beside her, fingers locked around hers as she signed her name next to his on the lease that afternoon. Frankie had never been more sure about signing her name on a contract in her life, and had not been this excited about moving since that first move to Ireland half a lifetime ago.  _

_ Less than two weeks later she was gone.  _

****************

The slamming of the door across the hall jars Frankie back to the reality of standing in his apartment. It was never theirs no matter what the lease may say. She never fully moved in. 

Everything but what she could fit in her dad’s backpack was put in storage. Jai took care of that. There’s nothing of her’s here anymore, no proof she once would have claimed this place as her home. 

But when she turns around and takes in the space that should scream Will Chase, she’s confronted with little pieces of herself everywhere. 

The bundt pan she made him her mother’s banana bread with extra chocolate chips, is hanging on the wall over the stove. 

The souvenir shot glass she bought him in Honduras when he felt guilty about having to stay back and send her on a mission alone is sitting on the shelf next to a bottle of the wine she loves and he hates. 

The box of Froot Loops she bought for late night snacking, much to Will’s sugar conscious horror, sits on top of the fridge next to a box of the Wheaties he loves.

Her toaster with the extra wide slots he claimed toasted bagels to perfection is tucked neatly into the space beside his blender. 

And there’s a note in her handwriting hanging on the fridge reminding them to pick up sweet potatoes, pecans, and brown sugar from the store. She was going to make her grandmother’s sweet potato casserole for their Christmas dinner at the bar before they flew to Indiana.

Frankie turns quickly away from the kitchen and the memories it holds hoping for some relief from the squeezing grip on her heart, but finds no sanctuary in the rest of the room. 

A book she left half read lays on the coffee table, the silly dinosaur bookmark Will bought her from the Natural History Museum still holding her page. 

She sees her copies of Lethal Weapon, Die Hard and The Walking Dead sandwiched between his library of romantic comedies. 

The blanket they cocooned themselves under, pressed against each other rests on the couch, next to a pillow. 

The Christmas tree they decorated together still stands in the corner, the gift he claimed is perfect for her sitting underneath with a big red bow. 

One of her hair ties is on the side table, so is a tube of her lip balm, her favourite ocean scented candle beside it, and at least five pictures of the two of them sit on the mantel above the fireplace.

Frankie glances quickly at them, trying not to linger on the memories that they call to mind. A hockey game, his birthday, gelato in the park, it’s all too much. 

She needs to get out of this room and away from the happy images that stare in judgment of her. Why she thought moving to the bedroom would be easier she doesn’t know, but it’s where she finds herself. 

She scrutinizes the bed, draped in the duvet they argued over in the middle of an IKEA before she kissed him into agreeing with her choice of indigo blue with small white dragonflies fading up from the bottom.

The bed where he first loved her, worshiped her body and kissed her scar. The bed she first told Will she loved him in, surprising him into tears when she said the words first. The bed she felt so safe and so loved, she slept without care of the world beyond. 

The bed she ran from. 

A pillow is missing from the left side, her side. While the right remains untouched and looks to have been like that for a while. 

She’s wondering why he didn’t sleep there last night when a black and white picture she’s never seen before catches her attention. 

Walking towards the dresser she picks it up and tries to place it. She’s in the foreground, head bent towards the floor, hair falling forward and covering most of her face, bullet necklace hanging limply from the hand wrapped around Will’s forearm while his fingers rest on her cheek and he presses a kiss to her head. There’s blood dripping from her temple and even with his eyes closed she can see the fear and agony in Will over her being hurt. In the background stands Jai watching over them, a look of relief and pride clear on his face. 

Her protectors. 

If only she protected as well as they did.

Looking closer at the picture Frankie remembers. Frankie doesn’t know who took the picture but she knows when. 

It’s from after their last mission. 

They were on the plane home, she was shaking and wearing Will’s clothes while he patched her up and Jai scrutinized his every move making sure no bandaids or tape were used. 

No one knowing she would disappear just a few days later. 

Frankie barely makes it to the toilet before she throws up the coffee Jai made her that morning. The memory too vivid, the pain too raw. 

She shouldn’t have come here, she should have waited for him to come to her at Jai’s. There’s too much of them here in this space, too much of what they were. Too much of what she broke.

Sitting on the cold tile floor trying to catch her breath and waiting for the room to stop spinning, Frankie attempts to ignore her shampoo still sitting half full in the shower, her razor on the shelf and her face wash on the counter. 

She’s been gone for months, but in this apartment it’s like she never left. 

Standing on unsteady legs she walks towards the sink and reaches for the bottle of mouthwash resting beside her yellow toothbrush still in the holder next to his. Unscrewing the top Frankie tilts the bottle to her mouth and immediately regrets it the second it liquid touches her tongue. 

It tastes like Will. 

Will who insists on using it before he kisses her in the morning or goes to sleep at night. Will who changed to the blue mint kind after she told him the cinnamon flavour burned her tongue. Will, who carried a travel sized bottle with him on every mission just in case he couldn’t find a place to properly brush his teeth. Her Will, who brags with his perfect smile about never having a cavity. 

She spits it out but it’s too late. 

Frankie closes her eyes against the tidal wave of memories that threaten to drown her. Returning to the bedroom she picks up a discarded t-shirt from the bed, lifts it to her face and stands there in the quiet breathing in his lingering scent and fighting the battle to restore her equilibrium. 

His scent calms her, it shouldn’t but it does. It always has. 

She doesn’t know how much time passes, her nose pressed into his shirt, damp eyes locked on a list of crossed off middle names he’s guessed sitting on his bedside table, heart beating wildly, when she hears a key turning in the lock and the keeper of her heart calling for her. 

Frozen she can’t answer. She’s not ready, not yet. She needs more time. 

But there’s no time to be had. It’s now, never no longer an option. 

“You’re here. Please don’t hide. I know you’re here.” She hears the plea, hears the pain in his voice and almost without permission her body is already moving as if pulled to him like a magnet. 

“If I didn’t want you to know I was here, you wouldn’t know.” Frankie pushes out, trying to sound flippant and cocky and everything he expects, but the fear of rejection and the bracing for hatred has it falling flat. 

He’s pale, paler than he was at the hospital. His eyes are too wide and look fearful, there’s sweat dripping from his brow, and his hands are shaking, from seeing her or something else she isn’t sure. 

He doesn’t say anything just stares at her like he can’t believe she’s real. 

She’s not sure what to do, what to say or where to start. Feeling like a lump is stuck in her throat she breathes out the only thing that comes to mind.

“Hey Whiskey.” 

*********************

At the sound of her saying his name, Will's world stops spinning. He’s trying to focus through the tears in his eyes. Trying to take her in all at once. Trying to make the memory of the love of his life fit into the body of the slip of a woman standing just feet from him. 

Her hair is longer and looks dark and dull, her eyes bloodshot and not as bright, her teeth are breaking the skin of her bottom lip in worry, and her arms are wrapped tightly around her middle, something he knows she does when she wants to hide that her hands are shaking. 

This is not his Sass, not the way he remembers her. 

She seems to shrink even more into herself, if that’s possible when he doesn’t say anything just continues to stare at her and she starts to move away.

“Don’t” Will starts. “Don’t leave Sass please. Please don’t leave.” He says moving closer to her but freezing when she recoils from him. 

She looks away from him and fixes her eyes on the floor, wrapping her arms tighter around her middle, nails digging into her skin. Frankie doesn’t do that, she doesn’t cower in fear and shake with nerves, she’s a fighter and she never backs down. 

Will can feel his heart breaking in his chest all over again. 

“Frankie.” He calls to her softly. “Frankie, look at me. I won’t come any closer, I swear I won’t. And I won’t keep you from leaving but please just talk to me. Just sit and talk to me. Please Sass, please. Just for a minute.” 

She lifts her head slightly and looks at him for a second before nodding her consent. 

With a sigh of relief he takes a step towards the couch. She does the same then freezes when her eyes land on the backpack slung over his shoulder. 

Betrayal flickers in her eyes and fear shivers across her face.

Will quickly puts the bag down on the barstool closest to the door and moves further into the apartment. 

“I took it from Jai’s.” He lies, “It was the only way I could be sure I would see you.” He knows the risk Jai took in giving it to him, he won’t betray the trust that action showed. “I won’t hold it hostage Frankie, it’s right there, you can take it and leave if you want to, I won’t stop you. But I really hope you’ll stay and talk to me.”

It’s killing Will not to demand she stay and explain, not to grab her and hold her and never let her go, to tell her that he won’t try to stop her from leaving. It’s a risk and he knows it. But he meant what he said, he won’t hold the bag and by extension her hostage, he won’t force her to stay, but he will do everything in his power to make her want to. 

He holds his breath as he watches her walk towards the bag and wrap her fingers around the straps. He feels the cracking of his chest when she moves to lift it, and he sees the pain on her face when she closes her eyes and mouths a series of words he’s too far away to hear even if she had spoken them aloud. 

His heart stops beating when she turns to look at him, bag still in her grip and pain on her face. They stare at each other for what seems like forever before she softly sighs, lets go of the bag and moves to sit on the corner of the couch closest to the door.

Relief flows through his veins as he moves to sit with her, followed quickly by sadness when she flinches away when he reaches for her hands. 

“Please don’t.” She whispers softly, pulling her hands into her lap and wringing them together. 

Will nods and marvels at her being within his reach. He’s been dreaming of this moment for months and now that it’s here he doesn’t know what to do. It seems she doesn’t either because she’s just as silent and still as he is. 

“You look good.” He tries, stupid he knows but it’s all he can think of. 

“Don’t start lying to me now Whiskey. I look like shit, Jai’s working on it. Hovering and fussing at me non stop.”

“Glad to hear it.” And he is, he’s glad someone is looking after her, even if he wishes she’d let it be him. 

Lapsing into silence again Will watches her, trying to figure out what to ask, what she’ll answer, and how he’s going to convince her to take a chance on him. 

“How are you feeling?” Her voice interrupts his thoughts. 

“Good.” He starts, then pauses when she gives him a pointed look with a raised eyebrow. “I’m getting there, my doctor gave me the all clear. I’ll have to do some PT once my arm is out of the cast and I need to go back for some blood tests next week but if all goes well I should be cleared for desk duty soon and field work in a month or so.”

“That’s good.” Frankie comments softly, a look of relief on her face. 

“My one nurses said I healed better than even she expected, said I must have had a reason to.”

“Maggie.” Will blinks at her in shock, at the sound of the familiar name. “I met her at the hospital.” She explains quietly, looking away like she’s been caught doing something wrong. 

“When you came to see me.” Will offers, reaching into his pocket, pulling out the found tube of lip balm and holding it out for her to see. 

A look of shame and guilt flutters across Frankie's face when she sees the small white and yellow cylinder resting in his palm. 

“You didn’t want me to know.” Will whispers, squeezing his hand around the tube and holding it tight. 

“I wasn’t ready to talk to you yet.” She whispers back. 

“Are you ready now?”  _ Please be ready Frankie, please. _

“I don’t know.”

“Frankie please just tell me why, tell me what I did, so I can fix it. Please just let me in.” He can’t stop his hand from reaching for her face and running his fingers over her cheek, as he makes his plea. 

Will watches her closely and holds his breath when her hand wraps around his arm holding him in place as she squeezes her eyes shut and slowly shakes her head. “Will I…” 

The buzzing of an alarm on his phone startles them both and has Frankie jerking away from him, eyes wild and breathing laboured. 

“Sorry, it’s just a reminder to take my pills.” Will tries to reassure her as he grabs his phone and clumsily presses the buttons to silence it. “It’s ok Sass, I promise it’s nothing to worry about.” He continues when he sees the worried look on her too pale face. 

“Don’t call me that.” She whispers so quietly he barely makes out the words. Then with a clearing of her throat she asks where his pills are. 

“Susan has them all organized on the counter, but don’t worry about them right now I’ll take it later.” Will lies again, trying to refocus her attention from his pills and back to why she left. The doctor sent him home with a weeks worth of Percocet and Tylenol 3s, he’s not planning on taking a single pill.

“You need to take your pills Will, they’re helping you heal.”

“They make me fall asleep.”

“Then you sleep. You look exhausted and you’re not hiding the fact you’re in pain well, sleeping will help.” 

“I don’t want to sleep. I want to talk to you. I want to be here and awake with you. If I sleep you’ll disappear and I’ll be alone again. I don’t want to be alone anymore Frankie, I don’t want you to leave me. Not again. Please.” 

Will can hear the desperation in his voice, he can feel the tears on his cheeks, and he can see the sadness and guilt in Frankie’s eyes. 

But it doesn’t matter, he needs her to know, he needs her to stay and talk. It doesn’t matter that his body is screaming in agony, sweat is dripping into his eyes, he feels lightheaded, his vision is blurring, or that his muscles are quivering in strain. He won’t take anything while the opportunity to talk to her is right in front of him. 

“I’ll stay.” She murmurs. “I won’t leave until we’ve talked. But you need to take your pills Will. I need you to heal.”

He’s not sure he believes her.. “Promise me. Promise you won’t leave me.” He begs, grabbing her hands and holding tightly. 

“I’ll stay until you wake up, I won’t promise any more than that. I can’t.” She murmurs, voice thick, like she’s fighting back tears. 

Will doesn't want to, he doesn’t want to risk waking up and having her gone. But he can see in her eyes that she won’t talk to him now, not when he’s exhausted, in pain, and his hands are shaking in hers.

“Green bottle, only one pill.” 

“Bottle says two.” Frankie argues, when she brings back the bottle from its place on the counter.

“Just one for now.” Will groans, stretching out on the couch pillow behind his head. Her pillow. It doesn’t smell like her anymore but he uses it every night just the same. 

With a gentle sigh of resignation, Frankie unscrews the bottle cap and hands him one pill and a glass of water. “You’ll be more comfortable in the bed.” 

“I don’t sleep in bed anymore.” Will confesses softly, eyes on her when he does. “I can’t sleep in there, not without you.” He tried a few times, but he never made it more than an hour. Too many memories. He hasn’t slept there since she left. 

She flinches at his words and that trace of guilt he’s seen float over her face more than once in the past 20 minutes does so again. She watches him for a minute then nods slowly, her eyes turning darker, the way they do when she’s about to do something reckless. 

“Well I’m here now, so let's get you into bed.” She says shyly, and offers her hand to help him stand. 

“Really?” He questions in wonder, already on his feet and following her to the bedroom, his fingers tingling where their hands are tangled together. 

She doesn’t respond, just leads him into the room and to his side of the king size bed. She helps him settle with pillows behind his back and under his knees, then circles the bed and takes her place beside him, resting her head on the pillow she took off the couch. 

They both lay there staring at the ceiling, two feet apart, hands stiff at their sides. The tension in the air makes Will’s heart break all over again. She’s finally back where she belongs, in their home, in their bed, right there beside him, and nothing feels right. 

“Frankie?” Will’s voice cracks, he can feel the medicine pulling him under already.

“Yeah.”

“You know I love you right? That I love you more than anything in the world. That I would do anything for you. Anything, all you have to do is ask.” He’s crying again and he doesn’t bother to hide it or wipe his tears, he needs her to know.

She takes a deep shuddering breath, turns towards him and nods, tears in her eyes when she does. 

“I missed you so much Francesca. Please don’t leave me, please I love you so much. Please...” He whispers, rolling over and reaching for her, hand landing limply on her hip as he feels himself slipping into sleep.

He’s barely awake when he feels the bed shift and Frankie grasp his hand in hers. And he would swear on a stack of bibles that he feels her lips ghost over his and a whispered “I love you too” as she rests her head next to his on the pillow just as the dreams take him.

**********************

Will wakes up to the feel of his phone incessantly vibrating in his pocket. He’s confused at first, used to waking up in the hospital and not his own bed. But as soon as his mind clears, he tenses and his eyes begin searching the room wildly for Frankie. 

They don’t have to travel far. No more than a few inches in fact. She’s right there beside him. Pressed up against him, her head beside his on the pillow, face pressed into the crease of his neck and hands tucked under her chin, the way she used to do before they started sleeping together and she would try not to wrap herself around him. She’s breathing deeply and evenly and her face is more relaxed than it’s been the entire time she’s been here. 

The buzzing stops then starts again a few seconds later. Will moves slowly and carefully, taking it out of his pocket and powering it down completely without even looking at the missed notifications. He doesn’t want anything to interrupt his time with Frankie. 

Looking at the clock across the room he sees they’ve been sleeping for almost two hours. Well he has, he’s not sure about her, but if he had to guess he'd say she’s been asleep almost as long as he has. She looked almost as tired as he felt when they settled on the bed, her eyes still bruised with exhaustion even now. 

His body is sore, his throat is achy and dry, and his stomach is twisting painfully without food to ease the path of the pill he took, but he doesn’t want to move. He just wants to relish in her closeness and bask in the smell of her shampoo that’s clinging to the hair that tickles his nose when he breathes her in. 

He holds off as long as he can, just watching her sleep, before he slides away from her and out of bed. He feels like his stomach is twisting in knots and if he doesn’t eat something soon he knows he’s going to start gagging. He doesn’t want to wake her up like that.

She doesn’t even move when he rolls away, a sure sign she’s deep in sleep. She’s a light sleeper, but when she’s really tried and he’s beside her she sleeps like the dead. A feeling of pure joys swims in his chest at the idea that she was comfortable enough to let herself sleep so deeply next to him, and what that might mean for their future. 

Heading for the kitchen Will is smiling, already thinking about getting back in bed and wrapping his arms around her when he misjudges a step, bumps into the barstool and sends Frankie’s backpack crashing to the ground, some of its contents spilling out of the top and across the floor. 

“Shit.” He mutters, bending down to pick the escaped items up without thinking, and breathing in sharply when the movements cause pain to shoot through his belly and across this chest. “Damn it.”

Taking a deep breath and resting his hands on his knees while a wave of nausea passes over him, Will surveys the items in front of him. There’s a few books, a phone, a picture of her parents, a knife, passport, wallet and some random items one might need when fleeing the country at a moment's notice. 

A box of condoms is sitting inches from his feet and Will tries not to think about what that means. They’ve never used them, she has an IUD and they’re both clean and committed to each other. He thought they were anyway. 

Shaking his head to clear the hurtful ideas of why she needs them now away he takes in the remainder of the fallen objects. 

A yellow hoodie catches his attention. He doesn’t have to turn it over to know it has a Indiana Pacers logo on the front. She stole it from him the first night he slept at her apartment, claiming it was payment for the coffee she made him the next morning. 

The tiny snow globe keychain he bought her in Prague draws his attention next. It’s still holding only two keys, one for Jai’s apartment and one for Will’s, “only two places I ever need to be Whiskey,” she claimed, with a kiss to his lips when she added his key to the ring. 

Next to the keys he sees a strip of pictures of the two of them taken in one of those old photo booths from when he was still wooing her and took her to Coney Island to win her a teddy bear at the sharp shooting game. She of course, ended up winning one for him instead. He remembers how happy she was and how cocky she looked when she handed him that pink bear with the yellow bow. He’s never seen a smile so pretty. 

But it’s the small brightly wrapped blue box that has him braving the pain of bending over again to pick it up off the floor. He’s seen it before. She held it up to the camera when they video chatted less than a day before she ran. 

The perfect Christmas gift she claimed, no way he could top it. 

The box looks banged up, it’s dented on the sides, the tape holding it together has been ripped off and there are water drop stains on each side. But Will is sure it’s the same box, it has the same white bow and the label has his name written in her neat scroll. 

Will’s hands shake when he tries to lift it, his casted hand refusing to cooperate and it drops once more. This time it lands on its side and Will watches the contents spill out on the floor. 

There’s guilt sitting in his chest as he reaches for the deep navy fabric that’s fallen out. He shouldn’t be touching her things, she took it with her because she didn’t want him to see it, he should be respectful of that. But the fact that she’s still carrying it makes him wonder why it’s so important that she does. 

“I didn’t know Will, I swear I didn’t know.”

Frankie’s strangled voice startles Will and he turns towards her quickly, the piece of soft fabric in his hands.

“Frankie I wasn’t...I knocked it over...I didn’t mean too…”

“I didn’t know.” Frankie sobs out ignoring his excuses. There are tears racing down her face and she’s struggling to catch her breath. 

“Frankie?” Confused, Will takes a step forward and kicks the box of condoms, sending it flying under the table. Will raises his arms to balance himself and catches a glimpse of mustard yellow hidden within the folds of the navy scrap of material in his hands. 

Opening his hand and holding the fabric up he sees the same letters that adorn the sweater he’s wearing, in tiny yellow font. 

“I’m so sorry Whiskey.” Frankie sobs, rocking back and forth, tears falling so fast it looks like a river is flowing from her eyes. 

“Frankie, what?” Will can’t wrap his head around what’s happening, looking up at her in confusion as he holds the tiny piece of navy blue infant clothing in his hand, the letters FBI written across the front.

“I killed our baby Will. I killed  _ your _ baby.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You think you know...but do you know the whole story...


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OK so trigger warnings all over the place here people, please read with care and caution. 
> 
> Also for anyone thinking "hey wait a minute you can't get pregnant with an IUD" I'd like offer up my brother as Exhibit A as proof that it can indeed happen. 
> 
> Enjoy and please remember that things aren't always as simple as they might appear.
> 
> Seatbelts please!
> 
> Nickell

_ "I killed our baby Will. I killed your baby.” _

Tension hangs heavy in the air as Will watches Frankie shake and sob from across the room.  _ What baby?  _ The question plays in Will’s mind as he tries to make sense of it all. He wants to go to her, wants to pull her against him and hold her tight until she stops shaking, but he’s frozen in place. 

Frankie’s sobbing so hard she can’t catch her breath. Choking on her tears, she starts gagging and bolts towards the sink, coughing and spitting out the bile that’s risen into her mouth. 

The suddenness of her movements unlock Will from his frozen prison and without thinking he moves, meeting her in the kitchen and pulling her hair away from her face, casted hand rubbing her back.

“I’m so sorry Will, I’m so sorry.” She hiccups out over and over again as she stands, body shaking, head bowed, hands white where they’re gripping the edge of the sink.

“Frankie.” He whispers, leaning forward and pressing his forehead to her temple. She was pregnant and now she’s not and his heart is breaking all over again.

He remembers coming home from college for the summer his final year and finding out his sister-in-law had had a miscarriage just a few days before. He remembers the tears and the haunted look on her face and how she carried the self imposed guilt for months, ignoring his brother's insistence that it wasn’t her fault. 

She confided in him years later, after his brother died, that having the support of the people around her was the only thing that got her through, that brought her out of the darkness and made her willing to even consider trying again. 

Frankie’s been alone, that’s all he can think about. He wasn’t there to hold her, to grieve with her, to help her through the pain. He should have been there. 

Frankie’s knees give out and she’s crumbling to the floor. He’s too weak to stop her, but he manages to slow her enough to get between her and the floor pulling her to rest mostly in his lap, his back pressed up against the cabinet. 

“I’m sorry Will. I swear I didn’t know. I wouldn’t have...I didn’t know.” She murmurs into his throat, fingers gripping his t-shirt.

Wrapping his arms tightly around her, he kisses her forehead, then her temple. 

“Shhh Frankie it’s ok, just tell me what happened.” He whispers softly into her ear as he rocks her gently. 

“Will…”

“Please Francesca…”

Will feels a tremor shake her body and a raspy breath escape her lungs when she opens her mouth. She won’t look at him, face pressed tightly to his chest. He can feel his shirt dampen with a river of tears, then wetness on his own cheeks when she tells him what happened. 

********************

_ “This is stupid.” _

_ “I know.” _

_ “They send us all over the world every week and now we have to prove we can do the job they already have us doing? It’s asinine.” _

_ “Absolutely.” _

_ “What do they think, we’ve suddenly forgotten how to shoot, how to load a gun, how to fight, how to put one foot in front of the other for fucks sake. Absolutely ludicrous!” _

_ “I could not have said it better myself.” _

_ Something’s off. Her always smiling, always happy, people pleasing Eagle Scout of a soulmate loves tests. He’s been training for these stupid recertification tests for weeks. He can’t wait to show off for the clipboard carrying drones they need to perform for.  _

_ Frankie pauses as she’s tying her hair back and shoots Will a narrowed eye look from her place across the locker room bench from him. _

_ “Are you just agreeing with whatever I say to pacify me?” _

_ “Is it working?” Will asks with a smile, dropping his foot with a freshly tied shoe back to the floor.  _

_ “Maybe.” Frankie concedes. She knows she’s being silly and that they have to do these recertification tests and physicals every year, she just hates them, but she likes that he’s letting her vent. It makes her feel better.  _

_ He makes her feel better.  _

_ “Come on pretty girl, let’s get this over with.” Will says with a quick kiss to her forehead, moving towards the door that will take them to the assessment gym and the waiting scoresheets.  _

_ Frankie grabs his hand before he can get too far and pulls him back to her, one hand moving to his cheek, a serious expression on her face. “Before we start, I just want you to know I love you.”  _

_ “Aww Sass, I love you too.” _

_ “I love you and I will still love you when you cry after I kick your ass in every single one of the challenges they throw at us. I know you’re trying your best Whiskey and that’s all that matters to me.”  _

_ She tries to hold back a smile she really does, but she can’t help it when he blinks at her in shock. She loves him so damn much and she loves teasing him more than anything.  _

_ He recovers slowly, but when he does he moves his body to tower over her, hands on her hips, lips inches from hers and the shit eating grin she adores lights up his face.  _

_ “So damn sassy. I hope you keep some of that cockiness after I mop the floor with you, no mercy pretty girl you’re going down.”  _

_ “Going down huh?” _

_ “Oh yeah.” _

_ “Hmmm, shame we don’t have time for that now, would make warming up far more enjoyable. Maybe tonight if you’re lucky.” Frankie smirks, tilting her hips against his and presses her lips to his gasping ones.  _

_ “Mean.” He murmurs, face bright pink at her innuendo. _

_ “You love it.” _

_ ******** _

_ They end up tied. Both find that fact incredibly irritating.  _

_ She bested him in marksmanship, knife throwing, lock picking and logic problems. He outdid her in hand to hand combat, weapons assembly, evasive maneuvering and negotiations.  _

_ Frankie cries fowl on his last victory.  _

_ “How is that even fair! It’s talking, all you do is talk. Rambling about nerd things and boring someone into submission isn’t a skill it’s torture. I know, you do it to me everytime you want me to watch one of your stupid movies.” _

_ “But you always end up watching them, don’t you?” Smirking at her when she huffs in response. “It’s because I’m a better negotiator.” _

_ “No, it’s because you promise me sex if I do.” Frankie counters. _

_ “That’s exactly what negotiating is Sassy.” Will responds, not even trying to hide the less than humble smile on his lips. _

_ “You’re a dweeb.” Frankie huffs. _

_ “I love you too.” _

_ They’ve showered and changed having completed the assessment portion of the day and are making their way towards the medical centre for blood work and physicals before they can go home for the night.  _

_ She’s secretly hoping he’ll negotiate her into one of his stupid movies when they get there. They’re growing on her, not that she’ll tell him that and she likes what he’s willing to offer her in exchange for viewing one. She likes that a lot.  _

_ Fuck, he really is a great negotiator.  _

_ “I’m going to win this round.” Frankie insists, a few minutes later when they both have needles sucking blood from their arms. _

_ “You’re going to win at blood tests?” _

_ “Without question.”  _

_ Will just shakes his head at her in wonder. _

_ An hour later Frankie emerges from the patient rooms to find Will pacing the lobby waiting on her. _

_ “I was starting to worry, I’ve been done for over 30 minutes. Everything ok?” Will asks, sincerity in his voice and worry on his face. _

_ “I’m fine Whiskey, I just needed to do a few extra things you aren’t lucky enough to have to suffer through.” Rolling her eyes, she grabs his hand and leads him out of the building and into the frosty December sunshine. _

_ “Sass, what...?” Will looks horrified, pulling her to a stop as soon as they reach the sidewalk. _

_ “They had to do a full pelvic and breast exam Will, all standard I promise.” Frankie says softly, she wants to mock his cluelessness but his genuine concern for her stops her from doing so.  _

_ “But you’re ok?” Will asks, looking relieved yet still concerned at the same time.  _

_ “Doctor said everything looked normal, but they always run extra tests just to be sure.”  _

_ “Ok” Will whispers softly, sighing out the last of his worries and pressing his forehead to hers. _

_ They stand there for a minute just breathing each other in when Will jerks back quickly, surprising Frankie and eyeing her with suspicion.  _

_ “You can’t use them.” _

_ “Can’t use what?” Frankie asks, completely lost. _

_ “The extra tests, you can’t use them to win Frankie, that’s cheating.” _

_ Huffing out a snort of amusement, Frankie shakes her head slowly and tries to figure out if there is a way she could possibly love this man any more, but comes up empty.  _

_ “Oh I’m using them Whiskey. Time to concede defeat and face it, you're the one going down.” _

_ Will eyes darken and a small grin plays at his lips. “Just as soon as we get home, beautiful.” He promises in the husky whisper that always makes her shiver. _

_ Heart rate kicking up a few notches, Frankie almost drags him into a cab and has to fight to keep her hands from crossing the line into public indecency on the ride home, laxing her standards a bit once they reach the elevator.  _

_ Hands roaming freely and lips glued together they stumble from the elevator and right into Will’s excessively flirty and annoying as hell neighbour. Ignoring her whines and attempts to capture Will’s attention they unlock the apartment door and slam it shut behind them.  _

_ It’s been a day full of trying to one up each other and it doesn’t stop until they pass out that night, both exhausted and claiming victory.  _

_ She’ll never admit it out loud, but she doesn’t care about any of it, she has him and that’s all the victory she needs. _

_ ******************* _

_ Three days later Frankie is still feeling victorious, even if a little sad while she watches Will move around the bedroom, her stomach squishing a little in reaction to the reason why. _

_ “Are you sure you’re ok with this?” _

_ “It’s fine Will.” _

_ “Are you sure? It’s only been a few days.” _

_ “Will.” Frankie groans out with a sigh, falling back on the bed dramatically.  _

_ She’s been sitting on their bed for almost an hour watching him pack, and listening to him explain how rolling your clothes in a suitcase offers both more room and fewer wrinkles.  _

_ She must really love him, she doesn’t know how else she could possibly withstand this conversation for so long.  _

_ She feels the bed dip and his hand reach up to brush the hair from her face, exposing the bruise she got a few nights ago on an Ollerman mission gone wrong, as he settles beside her on the bed.  _

_ “I don’t want to leave you. Not when you’re still hurt.”  _

_ “I’m not still hurt. I have a bruise on my forehead, that’s it and it’s fading fast. And you need to go, it’s your job. It’s Washington Will. You’re going to boring meetings in Washington, not taking down the Russian Empire. You’ll be back in two days.” _

_ “Three days. Two nights. Two nights away from you. I hate that.” _

_ Truth be told she doesn’t like it either. Her stomach squishing again at the idea of him being gone. They’ve not slept apart in months except for a few nights here and there when missions or meetings called for it.  _

_ She hated those nights, she never sleeps well without him anymore.  _

_ “Come with me.” He requests, for about the 100th time since the order to appear came through yesterday.  _

_ “Will…” She wants to go with him, she does, but she really wants to finish packing and officially change her address as well.  _

_ “Frankie I don’t want you to be alone.” He looks so damn torn up at the idea of leaving her she softens immediately.  _

_ “I’ll be fine, Will. I’m going to pack up the rest of my apartment and by the time you get back I’ll be completely moved in, toaster and all.” _

_ “Promise.”  _

_ “Promise.” _

_ Will leans down and softly kisses her, hand moving under her shirt to stroke at her scar. It always calms her when he does that, she’s beginning to think it calms him too.  _

_ Wrapping her arms around him, she pulls him closer and more fully on top of her. They’ve only got an hour before his cab comes and he leaves her for three days.  _

_ There’s no way she’s letting him go before reminding him of what he needs to hurry home to.  _

_ ******** _

_ “I can’t believe I’m going to be late.” Will mutters, struggling to get into this jacket, flustered at the incessant buzzing of the intercom telling him his cab has been waiting for over five minutes.  _

_ Frankie just grins and offers no help from her spot beside the table, dressed in nothing but his faded FBI t-shirt and a pair of wool socks.  _

_ “This is your fault.” He mutters, glaring at her while tugging on his boots. _

_ “I take full responsibility.” Frankie agrees, but offers no shame in her words. It was totally worth it.  _

_ Will huffs at her, then soften his look and reaches for her. “I love you Francesca. I’ll see you in three days. 69 hours really.” _

_ “69 hmmm?” Frankie smirks, cocking one eyebrow at him and raking her eyes up and down his body.  _

_ “Tease.” Will accuses with a blush.  _

_ “Only if I don’t plan on following through Whiskey, and I plan on following through.” She whispers and presses her nose into his neck, breathing him in one last time before he leaves.  _

_ “You’re going to be the death of me.” Will groans and pulls her closer, nose buried in her hair. _

_ Frankie chuckles and pulls away when the buzzer goes off yet again. _

_ “I love you. Play nice with the boys and girls in Washington.” _

_ “I’m always nice. It’s an Eagle Scout requirement.” _

_ “So sexy.” Frankie deadpans. _

_ “Damn straight” Will says with a grin, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear and pressing his lips to the bruise found hidden underneath.  _

_ Pulling her with him towards the door, he opens it and turns to steal one more kiss from her lips. _

_ “I left a voicemail message on your phone, you should check it.” _

_ “Will, you know I hate voicemail.” Frankie whines as he steps into the hall. _

_ “Oh I know. Love you.” With a wink and smile he’s racing down the hall, into the stairwell and off to save the world, one boring board meeting at a time. _

_ Frankie walks back into the apartment and straight to her phone with a grin. Knowing whatever message he left her is going to be beyond cheesy and over the top romantic.  _

_ She can’t wait to hear it.  _

_ “You have two new voicemail messages.” An automated voice tells her. _

_ Pressing the buttons to listen to them she’s surprised to find she missed one that was left three days earlier. He didn’t mention that one and he knows she never checks. _

_ “This message is for Francesca Trowbridge…” _

_ ******* _

_ Pregnant? _

_ How can she possibly be pregnant? _

_ She has an IUD, it’s required of all female field agents, there must be some mistake.  _

_ But the message left by the doctor and the four positive pregnancy tests sitting in front of her on the bathroom counter confirm it.  _

_ Francesca Trowbridge is with child, and has been for over a month.  _

_ There’s a tornado of emotions swirling around Frankie's mind as she tries to process what this means. She wishes Will was here to help her muddle through her feelings. He always seems to know what she’s feeling even when she doesn’t.  _

_ Will. She needs to tell him, he needs to know. He should be here for this. She smiles softly when she imagines the look on his face when he finds out. Will Chase was born to be a dad, he’s going to be over the moon.  _

_ She’s terrified, in shock and about a thousand other emotions but there’s one overriding them all. Pure and utter joy. She never let herself think about a baby as a real option for her. Not in her line of work, not with the lifestyle she’s chosen and definitely not after the years of abuse she’s put her body through.  _

_ She didn’t realize how much she wanted this until now. How much she wanted a family and how much she wants that family to be with Will.  _

_ It may be too early in their relationship, they don’t even officially live together yet, they’re not married, not even engaged, though she suspects he’s going to ask before long, but all that aside this baby is most definitely wanted.  _

_ Moving her hand to rest on her stomach she closes her eyes and pictures a little boy with bright green eyes, sandy hair and a crooked grin. When she was little she always dreamed of having a baby girl of her own, but now she can picture nothing more perfect than a tiny version of the man who holds her heart.  _

_ Will. She should call him, tell him, give him a reason to feel as happy as she does right at this moment. But she doesn’t want to.  _

_ Maybe it’s selfish not to tell him right away, but she wants to see him when he finds out. She wants to see his face light up and the tears she knows he’ll cry fill his eyes. She wants to feel him pull her close and rub her stomach and hear him whisper that he loves their baby inside. She wants to be with him.  _

_ Three days, two nights. That’s what she has to wait. Less than really, he’s been gone over a half a day already.  _

_ She misses him.  _

_ That charm virus of his has turned her into one of those girlfriends that can’t bear to be apart from the man they love, and right in this moment she will freely admit that she doesn't mind. He’s made her soft when it comes to him, and she is perfectly happy to be as sappy as he is, he gave her a baby, it’s the least she can do.  _

_ Frankie’s phone buzzes, calling her attention away from how much she misses Will and directing her to a message arriving from him.  _

_ It’s a video message sent from his hotel room. Pressing play she smiles when she hears his excited voice. _

_ “Frankie! Look, look, look. I was walking back to the hotel from my meeting and I walked past a store and guess what it was called? Sassy Sweets! They have so much candy and so many cupcakes, you’d love it. And look what I got you!” He’s holding a small stuffed animal she thinks is supposed to be a llama, wearing a shirt that says “Sassy and Classy” across the chest.  _

_ “It’s perfect right? Miss you already, love you!” Will signs off, blowing her a kiss, eyes shining bright.  _

_ Frankie smiles and watches the video two more times. Then sends him an eye rolling emoji in response knowing he’ll be waiting for it.  _

_ “You’re daddy is such a dork...I can’t wait for you to meet him.” She whispers softly, hand on her belly once more.  _

_ Frankie smiles slides into a smirk when she realizes that she won the assessments after all. Hands down, she had the better blood test results.  _

_ *************** _

_ When Frankie wakes up the next morning she takes two more pregnancy tests just to make sure she didn’t imagine the whole thing. Smiling wider than should be possible when she sees the two dark pink lines appear on each one.  _

_ Will is going to be home tomorrow night and she busting at the seams to tell him. She almost slipped up and told him last night when they talked before she went to sleep, but she caught herself in time then distracted him with some less than innocent words and imagery when he questioned her.  _

_ She wants to tell Jai, it goes against every one of her instincts not to, but knows it will hurt Will’s feelings if he doesn't know first so she keeps it to herself. She’s got a busy day ahead of her. She needs to finish packing up her apartment, take a bunch of things to the donation centre, do some last minute Christmas shopping and she needs to figure out how to tell Will.  _

_ Adding a few items to the growing grocery list on his fridge, she grabs the bag of incriminating positive pregnancy tests and leaves the apartment, throwing the bag down the garbage shoot as she does.  _

_ One does not need to be a spy to know that a pregnancy test in the trash will always be found. A fact confirmed in multiple movies Will has made her watch.  _

_ It’s a long walk from his apartment to hers, but she wants the time to think about how to tell Will and hopes the walk might clear her head enough to come up with something. If it were him, he’d do everything in his power to make it special for her, she wants to try to do the same for him.  _

_ She looks in every shop window she passes looking for inspiration and finds it almost halfway between her starting and ending points, hanging innocently behind the glass of a little boutique like a beacon waiting for her.  _

_ She’s in the store and grabbing it right out of the window display before the store clerk even has time to greet her. It’s the smallest, most perfect, utterly magnificent article of clothing she’s ever seen. Holding the tiny onesie in her hands she marvels at its navy softness and yellow insignia.  _

_ “Cute isn’t it?” A voice asks from behind her.  _

_ Turning, Frankie’s hands curl around the fabric, as though worried someone might try to take it away. _

_ “I want it.” Frankie demands, not the most polite thing to say she knows, but she also knows there’s no way she’s leaving the store without it.  _

_ “Then have it you shall.” An older man with sparkling blue eyes assures her. _

_ Frankie doesn’t look at the cost when the man rings it up, just taps her card when she’s prompted. She’s too busy watching him wrap the tiny outfit in tissue paper and place it inside a small blue box, tying it shut with a white bow.  _

_ She wants to rip the box open and look at it again, hold it in her hands and imagine a tiny copy of Will wearing it while his dad wears his own much larger matching version. The image alone is enough to bring a smile to her face and a tear to her eye. _

_ “Someone is really going to love this Christmas gift.” _

_ “Oh it’s not a…” Frankie starts then stops, idea forming in her mind and a smile teasing her lips. Will’s been bragging for weeks about how he got her the perfect gift and there’s no way she could top it. Well she’s pretty sure she just did and she can’t wait to see the expression on his face when he opens it.  _

_ Frankie’s riding cloud nine for the rest of the day. She feels like she’s walking on air all the way to her apartment, she hums to herself as she packs the last of her possessions into boxes and she giggles like a schoolgirl when she feels her stomach squish and gurgle while she takes a shower.  _

_ If any of the people she’s killed, interrogated or otherwise interacted with over the past 10 years could see her now, they’d be hard pressed to recognize her as the same person.  _

_ She looks happy, she thinks, as she looks at herself in the mirror while she brushes her teeth before crawling into bed to call Will. She can’t remember the last time she felt this happy, before her parents died for sure. She’s had moments of happiness sure, and she’s certainly felt happy these last six months with Will, but this is a whole new level of euphoria and damn it if she can’t stop smiling.  _

_ She taunts Will with the package while they video chat before she goes to bed for what will be the last night in her apartment. She smiles when she tells him she’s got him beat no question, and laughs when he tries to guess knowing full well he never could.  _

_ “Goodnight Francesca Belle.” _

_ “You’re so far off I’m surprised you even got the Francesca part right.” She counters with a laugh. _

_ He chuckles softly and with a soft “I love you” he’s gone. _

_ “We love you too Whiskey.” She whispers to the quiet room after he hangs up, one hand on her stomach, the other reaching for the pillow he uses and pressing her nose into it, breathing in his scent.  _

_ Tomorrow she moves in with him for good, and by dinner he’ll be home. She’s more than ready to start her new life with him. _

_ ******** _

_ It’s dark when she wakes up, and for a fraction of a second she’s not sure why she did. Then a spasm of pain grips her stomach and it feels like she’s being ripped in two. Letting out a moan of pain Frankie rips off the covers and pushes herself to the edge of bed, trying to stand before pain grips her once more and has her dropping her head between her knees to keep from passing out.  _

_ Tears are streaming down her face and she’s choking on a sob when she’s finally able to make it to the bathroom, flicking on the light and looking down, already knowing what she’s going to see.  _

_ The pair of boxers she’s wearing are soaked through with blood, her legs are stained red and she has to grab the counter so she doesn’t fall over when her stomach seizes again. _

_ Stumbling into the shower, Frankie strips out her clothes and crumbles to the floor, sobs racking her body and wails of pain and sorrow escaping her lips.  _

_ She sits on the floor of her shower, until the water runs clear and she’s no longer sure if the moisture on her face is from the shower or her tears. She wants Will so bad she sobs out his name more than once, as if begging for him might make him appear before her.  _

_ She doesn’t want to move, she just wants to sit here and wait for Will to come get her and make everything ok, but she knows she can’t. She needs to go to the doctor, and make sure she’s ok.  _

_ Will would be upset if he knew she didn’t get checked, he’s going to be sad and feel guilty enough when he finds out he wasn’t here with her, she doesn't want to add to his worry.  _

_ Forcing herself to stand on unsteady legs, Frankie dresses and makes her way to the 24 hour emergency clinic a few blocks from her place.  _

_ She should call Jai or Susan to go with her, but she doesn’t. She doesn’t want anyone to know before she has a chance to talk to Will and this is not a conversation she wants to have with him over the phone.  _

_ She won’t do that to him.  _

_ It’s not overly busy at 3am and the nurse rushes her into a room when Frankie tells her what happened. They have to remove her IUD and the doctor lets her know she might be in pain and bleeding for a few days, but it was a early miscarriage with no lasting complications so she should be fine to try again in a couple of months if that’s what she wants to do.  _

_ “Do you know why?” Frankie asks softly. _

_ “It was early in the pregnancy, only about 10 weeks, so it could have been any number of things, there’s no rhyme or reason unfortunately, sometimes it just happens.” The doctor explains softly while he ultrasounds Frankie’s stomach. _

_ “My job...sometimes I get hurt...I didn’t know until yesterday…” Her injuries from the Ollerman mission were only to her head and arms and she only had superficial bruising on her upper back, nothing anywhere near her stomach, but she wasn’t fully conscious the full time either to really know. _

_ The doctor looks at her in concern. “When did you get hurt?” _

_ “Five days ago.” _

_ Running the wand over her stomach again he looks closer at the screen. “I’m not seeing any signs of trauma or swelling and you don’t have any bruising to your stomach or hips so it’s unlikely whatever happened was the cause. And given that it's been almost a week it’s unlikely the two events are related. You would have miscarried shortly after any injury if that was the case.” The doctor turns off the machine and helps Frankie to wipe away the gel on her stomach and sit up.  _

_ “Sometimes these things just happen Miss Trowbridge, it’s not anyone’s fault it’s just your body’s way of saying it’s not the right time. That doesn’t mean it won’t be next time. You’re young and healthy, there’s no reason to believe it won’t happen when it’s right.” _

_ “Thank you.” Frankie whispers, relieved to know she didn’t cause it to happen.  _

_ “I’m going to give you a prescription for some muscle relaxants to hopefully stop the worst of the cramping, but I need you to follow up with your family doctor if it doesn’t subside in the next few days.” _

_ Frankie just nods and takes the paper. Thanking the doctor again as he stands to leave. _

_ Reaching out and moving the hair away from Frankie's forehead, the doctors frowns at the bruise before dropping his hand away again. “I know you said it was something to do with your job, but I’m going to leave a card here on the table for a friend of mine just in case you want it. He’s a domestic abuse counsellor and he can help you if you need it.” _

_ Frankie looks at the doctor in shock, and immediately opens her mouth to defend Will. She wants to yell at him and berate him for his assumption that Will would ever in a million years hurt her in any way. That the fading marks on her body were made in anger by the man who worships her in every way he can. But he’s gone, shutting the door behind him before she can say anything.  _

_ She leaves the card on the table and walks out of the clinic, stopping at the pharmacy on the way home. She wants to crawl back into bed and sleep until Will comes home. He’ll know want to say to make her feel better, he’ll know what to do to make everything ok again. She doesn’t want him to be away from her anymore.  _

_ She’s halfway around the world and as far as she can get from him less than 24 hours later.  _

***********

The kitchen tile is hard and cold underneath Will, his whole body feels like it’s on fire and his stomach is throbbing, but Frankie is sitting in his lap, face pressed into his neck and arms wrapped so tightly around him it’s almost as if she’s afraid he’ll vanish if she lets go. 

He wouldn’t move even if the building was on fire. 

His hands are running up and down her back and into her hair, and his lips are pressed firmly against the crown of her head. His heart is breaking for what they lost and for the pain she’s lived with alone for the past four months. 

A million questions run through his mind. But only one he needs the answer to right now. 

“Why didn’t you tell me?” He whispers softly. 

Frankie takes a shaky breath, face still hidden in his neck, and fists her hands into his shirt just a little tighter. “You would have hated me. You  _ will _ hate me. You’ll try not to, but you will. I can’t let that happen, I can’t let you waste time hating me when you could be happy and whole loving someone else.”

“I could never hate you Frankie.” Will interrupts. How could she believe he would hate her for this. How can she believe he could love anyone but her.

Pulling back from him she wipes at her face, and presses her hand to his chest right above his heart. “You will Whiskey.” She whispers, then with a look of sadden determination she pulls herself away from him and pushes to her feet, moving to pick up her fallen items from the floor.

His heart double taps at the sound of her calling him Whiskey, the same as it has every time she’s said it since she’s been here. 

She never would concede to addressing him with any form of endearment, but when she calls him Whiskey, she says it in a way that makes it sound more like a prayer than a government issued code name. And in the quiet of their bedroom at night, she whispers it like it’s her only salvation from the darkness. 

If she’s still calling him that, if he can still hear the love in her voice when she does, then maybe she never stopped loving him. 

He gets to his feet painfully, holding back the wince and grunt of discomfort that beg for release, he doesn't want her to worry. 

He needn't have bothered she’s not looking at him anyway. 

“Frankie…” Will wants to argue that it’s not possible for him not to love her, and he’s reaching for her to do just that, but she sidesteps him and cuts him off. 

“You’re so good Will, too good.” She won’t look at him, just stares at the series of Coney Island photos in her hand while she speaks quietly. 

“You’re loyal and honourable and kind so you won’t ever say it, you’d spend the rest of your life trying to convince yourself that you still love me, that you can still stand to be around me after what I did. But you’d be miserable and I love you too much to do that to you.” 

Slipping the photos into her back pocket she takes a deep breath and lifts her head to look him in the eye. “You deserve so much more than a life spent with someone you hate. I won’t steal that away from you. I’ve taken too much already.”

“It wasn’t your fault Francesca. You didn’t do anything wrong, sometimes these things just happen. The doctor said that too right, he said there was no trauma, that you didn’t do anything to cause it. It wasn’t your fault.”

“Will...”

Reaching for her again he catches her before she can move away and pulls her close, bringing his hand to her cheek and making her look at him. “I could never not love you Frankie, you’re every part of my heart. You own the whole damn thing, every little bit of it is yours.” 

Tears fill her eyes with alarming speed and she pulls his hand away from her cheek, removing the navy fabric he didn’t realize he was still holding from it. 

“Will you don’t understand, the doctor was wrong, it  _ was _ my fault. I made the mistake, I didn’t listen, I was reckless, just like he wanted, I was stupid and stubborn and Ollerman he...”

“Ollerman?” He cuts her off. “Frankie, what does any of this have to do with Ollerman.”

Frankie closes her eyes, tears pushing out from under their lids as she shakes her head and pulls the onesie to her chest, pressing it against her heart. 

“Frankie…”

Swallowing so hard he can almost hear it, Frankie whispers words that send a wave of pure hatred right to Will’s core. 

“He knew Will, he knew even before I did, he knew and he used it. He used it and I made it easy for him. I killed our baby because of him.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I told you things aren't always as simple as they appear....seatbelts!


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok y'all I'm going to be real with you, I don't like this chapter. I can't get the words to work properly and the more I play with it the worse it gets so I'm giving up and posting it as it is or I fear it will never get done.
> 
> Full disclosure it was also three times longer so I deleted most of what I had and moved somethings to the next chapter which I'm hoping goes smoother.
> 
> Thank you so much to everyone reading and especially those leaving such kind words, they help more than you know as I've more than once thought about walking away from this beast. 
> 
> Happy Reading,
> 
> Nickell

The sound of Frankie calling his name and the feel of her grabbing at his shirt brings Will’s world back into focus. But it doesn’t stop her words from replaying over and over again in his head.

_ “He knew Will, he knew even before I did, he knew and he used it. He used it and I made it easy for him. I killed our baby because of him.” _

Ollerman knew before he did. A flash of jealousy streaks through Will at the thought before blind rage takes over.  _ I killed our baby because of him. _

The memory of what Jai said to him about making a plan and handling the situation with or without Will’s help plays in his mind. Will didn’t know what Jai meant then, he’s still unsure to be honest. But with only a few words from Frankie, without even knowing the whole story yet, without knowing what Ollerman did to cause Frankie to carry that fear and guilt in her eyes, he knows without a doubt it will be with him and he’s going to need his gun.

“What does that mean?” Will growls deep in his throat, anger barely concealed in his tone. 

“Will…”

He ignores her, “What do you mean he used it? What do you mean it was because of him?” he asks, voice low and hard, hands clenched tightly into fists as his sides.

He won’t say the words “kill” and “baby” in the same sentence, he’s shaking in fury and beyond angry, but he refuses to believe she did anything on purpose to end a life he knows she would have wanted. He won’t add to her guilt by accusing her of it. 

Frankie lets go of him when the harsh words leave his mouth, shrinking away from him and curling into herself as if bracing for an attack she has no ability to defend from. 

She holds his gaze for just a second longer before dropping her eyes to the floor, but not quick enough for him to miss the fear, shame, guilt and regret that fill them. 

He wants to comfort her, wants to wrap his arms around her and hold her until the pain fades away, but he needs to know what she means first. 

“Frankie you need to tell me what happened.” Will softens his voice and takes a step towards her, reaching for her face, but stops when she flinches and whimpers like an injured animal. 

She backs up until her hip hits the couch behind her, eyes flying around the room, not landing on anything for more than a second, she’s breathing erratically and he can see blood on her bottom lip where she’s biting it so hard she’s broken the skin. 

She looks absolutely terrified. 

He’s seen that look before, seen her eyes search wildly for escape, heard those whimpers of agony coming almost involuntarily from her. Only the last time he did they were preceded by her screaming in such raw terror that the memory of it alone has kept Will from sleeping more than a few nights. 

“He knew Will. He knew before the mission. I don’t know how but he got my blood tests and he knew. I didn’t know, if I had I wouldn’t have...I swear I wouldn’t have…” Frankie can’t seem to figure out what to say and just stops talking. 

“Israel.” He whispers, her eyes landing on him when he does.

Nodding slowly, she looks at him with grief filled eyes and offers him yet another apology he doesn't need. “I’m so sorry Will, it was my fault. I should have listened to you, if I did none of this would have happened.”

  
  


_ ***************** _

  
  


_ Less than 24 hours after the powers that be decide they could continue to do their jobs, Frankie is dancing in the middle of a Tel Aviv night club, shooting shots of water disguised as tequila, courtesy of cocktail waitress Susan and grinding on a target while Will watches from the balcony overhead.  _

_ They’d been working towards this mission for weeks. Planning and prepping and all of it was wasted. The meeting with corrupt government officials never happened; Ollerman was already gone. He got wind they were coming and fled mere hours before they arrived, calling Will’s cell phone to taunt him with the near miss and the suggestion that he visit a local bakery for some sfenj to help soothe his ego before returning home.  _

_ Angry and frustrated they were ready to return to the Hive when new intell came in from Ray. Ollerman might have slipped away, but he met with a local militia leader before he did. They don’t know what for and they don’t know where in the country the militia is headquartered, but they do know someone who might. Enter tonight’s target; Ezra Cohen. _

_ With little intell and only a few hours to plan, the team came to the conclusion that remote surveillance is the way to go. Frankie’s plan was to grab him and “motivate” him to provide answers, but she was outvoted. With only minimal grumbling from her about Will being “soft” and a “fucking boy scout” she agreed, but made it clear he was going to have make it up to her later. He agreed, Standish gagged.  _

_ With a quick profile from Susan they ended up targeting Ezra. Someone who attended the Ollerman meeting, but is low on the totem pole of importance, in hopes he won’t know enough to be careful when talking to people outside the group and dumb enough to lead them to the militias hiding place. With any luck he’ll be able to help shine a light on whatever Ollerman wants with them.  _

_ They all know this haphazard mission could and probably should be handled by local agents and is probably going to be useless and give them nothing. Ollerman’s not dumb, he knows they’re in the country and will be looking for leads. But still they rejected the idea of turning the job over to the junior agents waiting to jump in, Ollerman’s done too much damage to their team for any of them to just walk away. _

_ “She knows Will’s watching her right? I’m just asking cause chick is leaving it all on the dance floor tonight.” Standish comments in her comm from his place watching the night club feed in the van with Jai.  _

_ “She’s working Standish, leave her alone.” Will responds, trying and failing to hide all the jealousy in his voice.  _

_ “I’m just saying. She’s groping this guy pretty good and I don’t know what wiggling, sucking, contorting voodoo fashion magic shit she had to do to get into those jeans, but daaaaamn. Frankie can you even breathe in those pants, they’re so tight. Will you’re going to have to cut her out of those things when all this is over. Seriously those things are scuba suit tight.”  _

_ “Mute comms Jai.” Frankie hears Will ask, and she could not be more grateful. She feels dirty enough using her body like this, she doesn’t need a running commentary about how good she is at it.  _

_ Risking a glance up to the balcony, she makes eye contact with Will over her target's shoulder and sends out a silent thank you. What she wouldn’t give for it to be his hands on her ass and not the low ranking operator of the small but growing militia with apparent links to The Trust.  _

_ Sometimes she really hates her job.  _

_ She planted the tracker on Ezra more than five minutes ago, and he’s getting more handsy the longer she stays on the dance floor. What’s taking Jai so long? It should be done by now.  _

_ “I’m getting some interference, but the tracker’s finally live Frankie, time to go home.” Jai breaks the silence in her ear right on cue.  _

_ Frankie signals to Will that she got the message and watches out of the corner of her eye as he slowly moves his way through the crowd and out the front door where she knows he’ll wait for her to join him. Susan follows a minute later having abandoned her tray of water at the bar.  _

_ When they’re gone she leans into the man who’s trying to edge his hand down the back of her pants without any luck (they’re that tight for this very reason) and asks him to get her another drink. She almost needs to shout to be heard over the pulsing music and has to stop herself from recoiling when she feels his lips latch onto her neck as she does.  _

_ Instead of answering, Ezra grabs her by the belt loop of her jeans and pulls her with him through the crowd and to the bar, ordering them both another drink from a clean cut bartender.  _

_ This wasn’t the plan, he was supposed to leave her dancing while he went to get the drinks and find her gone when he came back.  _

_ “Guys, I’ve got a line of black SUV’s pulling up to the club and I don’t think they’re here for the music. Frankie, get out now.” Will insists. _

_ Frankie is ready to do just that when Ezra grabs for his phone and reads the incoming message. A look of excitement crosses his face before he leans in close and asks her if she wants to go for a ride on his motorcycle. _

_ “I must go to work, but I would like for you to come with me. Tonight will be a very special night and you will not want to miss it.” He’s practically bouncing with excitement as he speaks to her in slightly broken English. _

_ “Something’s not right Frankie, you need to get out now. I’m getting multiple layers of satellite interference starting to surround the building.” Jai says, starting to sound panicked, never a good sign.  _

_ But this could be the break they’ve been looking for and it’s sitting right in front of her on a silver platter. She ignores both Will and Jai, she can blame the interference Jai is talking about later she decides as she presses forward. _

_ “Oh what’s happening tonight?” Frankie asks, trying to act as excited as he is and ignore the instinct to flee that’s building in her stomach. _

_ “Big, big show. Lots of fire, lots of guns.” _

_ “Oh sounds dangerous.” _

_ “Not if you are with me I will protect you. But we must go now if you wish to see and be safe.” _

_ “Aw right now? How about one more drink first, you can tell me all about your work and how very important you are before we go.” Frankie pouts, hoping he’ll share more of tonight’s plans. _

_ “Negative Fiery, we can track him from here. We’ve got multiple hostiles entering the club, get out of there now.” It’s Will in her ear and he sounds more than a little impatient.  _

_ Frankie blocks out Will's voice as Ezra’s hand on her knee slides higher. She wants him to keep talking so she sips at the pink cocktail he hands her, keeps one eye on the door and listens to him talk about how important he is and how much she’ll love his motorcycle, while Will and Jai take turns yelling into her ear. _

_ It becomes clear a few minutes later, after a few flirty but pressing questions that Ezra has no idea what is actually going to happen tonight and she’s wasted her time, pissed off her team and risked the mission for no reason. Maybe they should have let the junior agents have this mission after all. _

_ There’s a brawl breaking out near the front door and men wearing clothing with the same militia insignia as Ezra’s, are starting to pack the club. It’s past time for her to leave. _

_ Frankie sets down her half empty glass and makes a show of asking the bartender where the washroom is.  _

_ Pointing her down a hall towards the back of the bar, Frankie nods her thanks and makes her promise to return to Ezra before long to take that motorcycle ride.  _

_ She moves quickly towards the rear of the building, weaving her way through the crowd and away from the men she sees scanning the club and making their way towards Ezra at the bar.  _

_ She can slip out the back door just as easy as the front, nothing to worry about. _

_ “Change of plans Whiskey, meet me around back.” Frankie murmurs quietly as she walks. _

_ “On my way.” _

_ She’s 10 feet from the door when her steps falter and the world goes dark.  _

  
  


_ ******************* _

_ Frankie jerks awake when a bucket of ice water is thrown on her followed closely by a backhand across the face, splitting her lip and filling her mouth with blood.  _

_ “Welcome back Agent Trowbridge.” Ezra smiles and wipes the blood from her lip to spread across her cheek.  _

_ She’s suspended from the ceiling, arms screaming in pain above her head, bare feet freezing and tied together, toes barely tracing the ground as she hangs limply and soaking wet in the middle of an empty warehouse.  _

_ She doesn’t know where she is, the last thing she remembers is Will’s voice screaming in her ear and the world fading to black around her.  _

_ She can’t hear Will now, the blood she feels dripping from her ear letting her know her comms have been removed and not gently.  _

_ She’s pissed. How could she have been so stupid, she should have known it was a trap. But she couldn’t help herself from taking the risk and banking on the reward it might offer. She should have listened to Will and left when she had the chance. Mistake number one. _

_ He’s going to be so mad at her. He and Jai are going to love lecturing her for this one. Bloody hell she’s going to have to eat eggs again. But Will is going to kiss every bruise on her body and the thought makes her smile just a little in spite of her current situation.  _

_ “No reason to smile beautiful, things aren’t going to end well for you.” Ezra snears. _

_ Coughing and spitting out some blood Frankie eyes him wondering if he knows he’s going to die very shortly. Will and Jai are coming and they’re not going to take kindly to anyone that hurts her, makes them grumpy.  _

_ Pulling her knees up as high as she’s able, Frankie rears back and kicks him in the stomach as hard as she can. Which turns out isn’t very hard at all, she mostly misses and her legs fall quickly back to drag on the floor, body hanging limpy from the ropes once again, head spinning at the effort.  _

_ Ezra laughs at her attempt to hurt him and reaches to push the hair from her face. “Poor girl, you’re still drugged honey, mind’s working but body not so much. You really should watch the people making your drinks better. Don’t worry though a little GHB never hurt anyone.” _

_ The drink at the bar she thinks, she was distracted, she should have been watching. Mistake number two. _

_ “Shame. I’d love for this body to be in full working order.” Ezra taunts as he moves his hands across her chest down her sides and around to grab her ass, pulling her body tight against his as he rubs himself against her. “Yes I think I’d like that very much.”  _

_ She can smell the bourbon on his breath when he talks, she feels his hands squeezing and pulling her tighter, then a hardening against her stomach as he moves his hips in a grotesque rhythm against her.  _

_ Bile rises in her throat and her stomach heaves in disgust. Rearing her head back she uses every bit of control she has to crash her forehead into his, feeling her own split open at the impact.  _

_ “You bitch.” He yelps, backing away as he wipes the blood from his head. “You’re going to pay for that.”  _

_ Reaching out he tears at her shirt, ripping the flimsy sheer material from her body, exposing her black lace bra and Will’s bullet necklace dangling from her neck. Wrapping his fist around it Frankie feels it tighten painfully then snap falling from her body and landing on the concrete floor with a soft ping.  _

_ She tries to see where it landed, Jai put a tracker in it so he can always find her and she never takes it off, but that’s not the only reason she wants it back. She wants it to feel close to Will, she wants him with her, she wants to focus on him, not on the hands of the man before her now.  _

_ But the blood dripping into her eyes clouds her vision and Ezra is moving at her again, smacking her across the face and clawing at her skin with dirty fingernails so sharp she knows she’s going to have scratches everywhere.  _

_ “Ezra stop! Boss said to bloody her face, not kill her.” A second voice calls out from behind Frankie. Ezra backs away, a look of pleasure in his eyes when she winces in pain.  _

_ She feels a new hand on her bare hip and fingers dragging around her waist to her belly button as their owner circles her. The bartender.  _

_ “Such a shame we have to bloody such a beautiful face.” He smirks, reaching up and cupping her cheek with one hand, the other tracing patterns on her stomach before moving lower to play with then undo the button and fly on her jeans.  _

_ He’s holding her face the same way Will does and it causes the bile to rise again. Before she can think better of it Frankie spits in his face. _

_ Frankie braces for attack but it doesn't come. Instead he wipes the spit and blood off his face and chuckles. “So feisty.” He says, running his hand up her heaving torso and pinching at her breasts through her bra.  _

_ “No that’s not right, not feisty. Sassy. That’s what he calls you right? That’s what your partner calls you. Sassy. Such an odd choice, but I can see it’s fitting.” He whispers softly, squeezing her breasts once more then trailing his fingers slowly around to her back and unclasping her bra.  _

_ Frankie feels the tension of the fabric release but it doesn’t fall away, it’s caught on her raised arms and Frankie is grateful. Tears are welling in her eyes and fear is making a home in her belly, but she won’t give them the satisfaction of seeing her cry or hearing her beg. She tightens her lips and clenches her jaw.  _

_ Please hurry up Jai. _

_ “Such a pretty girl.” The bartender taunts. Frankie closes her eyes at the words and tries to block them out. Those are Will’s words, Sassy, pretty girl, beautiful, those are words that belong to him, not the monsters before her.  _

_ She won’t let them ruin Will’s words. _

_ Hands are reaching under her bra and groping her now, pulling and pinching and leaving marks. They’ll pay for this Frankie vows and tries again to move her body, having only marginally more success at kneeing the bartender between his legs.  _

_ With a grunt he drops his hands and backs away, Ezra laughing at him when he does.  _

_ “Stupid whore.” He mutters and backhands her across the face, causing Frankie to cry out, head falling limply forward, a single tear of pain escaping and rolling down her cheek. _

_ “Cut her down Ezra, her face is bloody enough. Boss said not to hurt her, but he didn’t say we couldn’t have a little fun before dumping her in the street for her team to find. I don’t want her passing out before I have a chance to tame her.” _

_ Fear stops Frankie’s heart as she watches him undo his belt, unbutton his pants and pull down his zipper. She’s been a spy for over 10 years, and has used her body in more ways than she can count. Sex fine, she was ok with that, or she was until Will, but not anymore and certainly never this. _

_ She’s never had this happen before, not even close. She’s heard of agents who were brutalized this way on missions and she knows it happens to women all around the world everyday, but never her. She realizes now how lucky she’s been.  _

_ Her luck seems to have ended.  _

_ Please Will, hurry.  _

_ Her body crashes to the floor when she’s cut down. Legs too weak to catch her, she lands with her hands underneath her and feels blood rushing from her temple. Moving her fingers in a bid to get some feeling back she feels the chain of her necklace brush against them. She fists her hands around it in an attempt to comfort herself.  _

_ Whiskey where are you? _

_ She can hear them laughing at her and grunts in pain when one of them stomps on her already aching shoulders when she tries to get to her feet.  _

_ “Not so fast sweetheart, we aren’t done yet.” _

_ Ezra grabs her legs and flips her over so she’s laying on her back pressed against the cold floor, bra tangled in her arms as she tries to cover herself the best she can.  _

_ “Don’t be so shy honey, you’re so beautiful you shouldn’t hide it.” The bartender coos. Bending down and pulling her still bond arms over her head.  _

_ Frankie fights him pulling her arms tighter to herself and trying to kick away, drugs wearing off more and more as the minutes go by. But not fast enough she knows. _

_ “‘This will be more fun if you play along like a good girl. If you fight me, I’m going to have to make it hurt.” _

_ “Fuck you.” Frankie spits out, trying even harder to get away. _

_ He smiles at her, “That’s the plan sweetheart.” then nods to Ezra, “Grab her hands.” _

_ Catching her kicking legs he climbs on top of her and wrenches at her pants. He’s struggling, not able to move them more than an inch or two without her cooperation and Frankie is eternally thankful for their tight fit. _

_ She’s screaming and bucking against them as hard as she’s able, tears streaming down her face and heart beating manically when the hands on her suddenly go slack and her face is showered in blood. _

_ Frankie doesn’t know what happened and she doesn't care. She’s not being held down anymore and she’s not wasting her opportunity to escape. Pushing the bartender off of her she tries to get to her feet, stumbling as she does.  _

_ Hands grab her from behind and she’s swinging before she even looks. _

_ “Frankie, Frankie it’s me.” Will says catching her hands easily, then her body when she sags against him, clawing at his chest trying to get closer and sobbing out his name. _

_ “I got you Frankie, I got you.” Will murmurs in her ear holding her close, trying to calm her.  _

_ “Whiskey.” She sobs again, too disoriented to say anything more.  _

_ “You’re ok baby, you’re safe. I’ve got you.” Will says, hugging her hard then leaning away to grab the knife from his belt and cutting her feet then hands free, bra falling to the floor once they are.  _

_ He only calls her baby when she’s injured or scared, and right now she’s both. She doesn’t know why or how he knows, but as much as she’s always denied liking endearments, coming from him they comfort her when she needs comforting and right now she’ll take as many as he’ll give her and she doesn't give a damn who’s listening.  _

_ “Whiskey.” She breathes, grabbing at his jacket pressing her body as close as she can to him.  _

_ “Jai we’re coming out, call and get the plane ready we need to get home now.” Will is ripping the jacket from his body, helping Frankie feed her arms though the holes and zipping her in it while he makes his demand over his comm.  _

_ Will pulls her pants back into place, zipping and buttoning them without her help as she stands shaking and frozen in place in front of him. He’s not asking the questions clear in his eyes as he wipes the tears off her face, he knows she wouldn’t want the others to know the state she’s in.  _

_ With a kiss to her forehead he softly asks her if she can walk. She nods, the GHB they knocked her out with has mostly worn off, sped up by adrenaline no doubt, but she’s shaking so hard she needs to lean heavily on him as she follows him up the stairs.  _

_ They’re in a basement of a concrete warehouse, and the floor is freezing under her naked feet. When they get to street level Frankie can see the reason it took them so long to get to her; there's a massive antenna clearly meant to block radio signals in the middle of the room and at least 12 dead bodies on the floor.  _

_ They’ve been busy. _

_ But Will’s here now. She’s safe if he’s with her.  _

_ She can see the van parked about 100 feet away, Susan at the wheel and Jai hanging out the back with a worried look on his face. Frankie takes a step forward and hisses in pain when she steps on a bullet casing.  _

_ “Put your arm around my shoulders.” Will whispers softly, then picks her up as soon as she complies.  _

_ She would usually argue, but she’s so relieved to be in his arms that she doesn’t care if it makes her look weak to be carried like some kind of damsel in distress.  _

_ Instead she presses her face into his neck and lets the scents of lemon, gunpowder and everything that’s simply Will calm her. _

_ *************** _

_ They’re on the plane for over an hour before Will can coax her into letting him clean her up.  _

_ He brought her directly into the small airplane bathroom as soon as they got on board and helped her out of his jacket, removing her pants with an ease and gentleness that assures her she’s safe.  _

_ He runs his hands over her body quickly checking for major injuries, finding nothing more than a few minor bruises on her wrists, chest, neck and upper back. She flinches when he touches her head, a large bruise already forming and shudders a little when his hands land on her naked hips.  _

_ He freezes, looks at her in alarm and softly asks if she wants him to get Susan or Jai to help her instead. The concern and care in his eyes makes hers tear up again. He always wants to be the one to take care of her, but she knows that he will put her comfort ahead of his needs every damn time even if it kills him. She doesn’t want anyone but him.  _

_ She knows what it must have looked like when he came in, men on top of her, holding her down, half naked and screaming, but he got there in time, they never got her pants off.  _

_ Assuring him she wasn’t hurt anywhere else, she doesn’t want anyone but him at that moment and that he got to her before they could hurt her in that way, the guilt in his eyes eases, but just slightly. _

_ Pulling her close, he wraps his arms around her and holds her for a minute, both breathing the other in. She’s still got blood on her hands and face and her head needs to be cleaned and cared for, but right now just holding each other seems much more important. _

_ Heartbeat returning to normal now that she’s safe, she can feel the lingering effects of the drug and alcohol combo they gave her making her body feel heavy and her mind muddled. It’s not the first time she’s been drugged with GHB and she knows she needs to lay down before she falls over.  _

_ Will must feel her body giving out because he pulls away but keeps one hand on her hip to steady her as he reaches for her backpack and a change of clothes. Frankie rejects his offering and softly asks for his instead.  _

_ An hour later, curled up on the couch wearing his extra hoodie, sweatpants and cozy socks with her head resting on his chest and his arms wrapped around her, holding her close, she’s almost stopped shaking. _

_ “Come on Sass, you’ll feel better once we get all that blood off you. Please let me patch you up.” Will begs in a whisper, with a look of concern she can’t say no to.  _

_ With a nod she sits up, scoots to the edge of the couch and waits as Will gathers some supplies and calls for Jai to join them. He doesn’t have to ask, he knows she’ll want Jai here just as well as he knows Jai needs to see for himself that she’s ok.  _

_ While she waits Frankie looks at her shaking hands and the blood covering them. Her blood, their blood she’s not sure, she just sits there quietly staring at them head bent forward fighting against the nausea warring in her belly and the tears threatening to fall from her eyes at the idea of how much worse it could have been.  _

_ “Frankie?” She hears Will call softly. He’s kneeling in front of her, first aid kit at his side, Jai standing a few feet away with a look of concern on his face.  _

_ “I’m fine.”  _

_ “It’s ok if you’re not.” Will insists softly, hand moving to her face and resting his forehead against hers. _

_ Frankie lifts her hand to rest on his forearm, bullet necklace she forgot she was fisting dangling from her stiff fingers.  _

_ “If you’re here, I’m fine.” Frankie says softly. _

_ Will sighs and lifts his head to kiss her forehead. “I’m here baby, I promise.” _

_ Pulling back he takes her hand in his and stares at the necklace tangled in her fingers.  _

_ “He tore it off. He broke it.” Her voice sounds lost even to her own ears.  _

_ “I’ll fix it.” Will assures her and takes it from her hand and slips it into this pocket.  _

_ Will starts with her hands, cleaning away the blood and dirt, before moving to her face to do the same, kissing each newly cleaned area as he goes.  _

_ He talks to her while he cleans her up. He’s not like Jai, he doesn’t lecture or yell. He talks to her about a movie he wants to watch with her, where they should order pizza from when they get home and if she thinks they’ll get snow on Christmas Eve. He’s trying to distract her and while it’s not really working she loves that he’s trying.  _

_ Jai has moved to sit beside her while Will cleans her up, one hand holding hers the other rubbing at her sore shoulders. He doesn’t say a word until Will moves to put everything away again. _

_ “He never stops talking does he?”  _

_ Frankie can’t help the small laugh that escapes at Jai’s words.  _

_ He smiles before his eyes darken again. “You good?” _

_ “I kinda wish you would yell at me a little.” As much as she loves Will’s approach to cleaning and patching her up, she could also use a little of Jai’s bluntness right now.  _

_ He doesn’t disappoint.  _

_ “You didn’t stick to the plan Francesca.” He whisper yells in an attempt not to wake a sleeping Standish or draw the attention of Will, now in a deep discussion with Susan.  _

_ “I know, I’m sorry I didn’t listen.” Frankie doesn't even try to defend herself. She fucked up there’s no way around that fact.  _

_ “We make plans for a reason, what’s the point if you’re just going to ignore them?”  _

_ “I won’t do it again.” Frankie responds in an attempt to appease him.  _

_ “I don’t believe you.” He shoots back.  _

_ “That’s because you’re the smartest person in the room.” She offers with a small smirk.  _

_ “That is true.” Jai agrees without hesitation.  _

_ “I’m still mad at you.” Jai says after a few seconds of silence.  _

_ “Completely justified.”  _

_ “But I’m glad you’re ok.” _

_ “Me too.” She whispers and leans closer to rest her head on Jai’s shoulder, his arm moving around her back. “Are you going to make me eat eggs tomorrow?” _

_ “Nah, I think having to listen to Captain Care Bear ramble about that horrible movie was torture enough for one day.” _

_ Frankie laughs softly drawing Will’s attention, his eyes settling on her with a look of love and relief.  _

_ It might have been one of the worst nights of her life and her hands might still be shaking, but she’s got two men that love her more than anything and she can’t help but feel like the luckiest woman in the world.  _

_ Five days later her luck ran out. _

  
  


_ ************ _

Will moves again to reach for Frankie as they both recall what happened that night and how much worse it could have been. To his surprise she doesn’t pull away but leans into him, clawing at his sweater and pressing herself more securely into his hold. 

“I’m sorry Whiskey.” She mumbles into his sweater, “I’m sorry I kill…”

“Stop.” Will says gently but forcefully, pulling her face away from his chest so he can look her in the eyes. “Baby you have nothing to apologize for, it wasn’t your fault. The doctor said there wasn’t any trauma remember, you weren’t hurt, nothing you did on that mission or otherwise caused this. You didn’t do anything wrong, it just wasn’t our time.”

“Will…”

“It wasn’t your fault, Francesca. It wasn’t your fault.” Will presses his forehead to hers as he repeats the words again and again. Hoping that if he says it enough he can make her believe it and ease her guilt. 

Frankie presses closer to him, almost as if she’s trying to melt their bodies together and moves her face to rest in the crease of his neck, breathing deeply and tightening her hold on his waist before sharply pulling away again.

“Frankie it wasn’t...” Will tries again, he’ll never stop trying, but she cuts off his attempt. 

“It was my fault, it doesn’t matter what the doctor said, he doesn't know how stupid I was. He doesn’t know that I was reckless, and stubborn and didn’t follow the plan.” She starts pacing and hitting herself in the forehead while she bites out her words, to punish herself or to rid the memory he’s not sure. 

“Ollerman knew though, expected it and I played right into it. I did this Will, just me.” She stops and looks directly at him when she makes her statement, eyes hollow, face set in determination. 

“You said he used it, you said it was because of him. What does that mean Frankie? What does Ollerman have to do with any of this?” Will asks desperately, still having no idea what any of this has to do with Ollerman. It was members of the militia that grabbed and held her. Even if Ollerman had ordered her taken, she wasn’t hurt, how can she think any of this was her fault? 

Shaking her head sadly, she turns away from him and moves to look at the pictures over the fireplace. 

“He called me Will. He called me and told me. He told me how easy it was. He told me how simple it was to get to me, how predictable my recklessness was. How easy I made it for him to take away our baby. He told me how I caused it to happen, he told me and he laughed.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We'll we're a little closer to the whole story but not quite there yet, soon I promise, just as soon as I get myself out of the corner I've painted myself into I promise.


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok so it’s finally here, we’ll finally figure out why she went from wanting Will to comfort her after she lost the baby to running away and hiding from him so quickly, and why she's been holding on to all that guilt...I hope it was worth the wait!
> 
> Again all my medical knowledge comes from the most reliable of sources: Google and TV, so if there's a mistake blame them.
> 
> Seatbelts!
> 
> *So I've kinda painted myself into a corner so next week's update might be a little delayed, I'm working on it but it might take an extra minute. 
> 
> Thanks to all those leaving reviews they are very kind and encouraging and kinda light a fire under my ass to write so thanks for that!
> 
> I can't remember who wanted it but my twitter is @canadiannickell not that I've ever used it but there you are.

_ “He called me Will. He called me and told me. He told me how easy it was. He told me how simple it was to get to me, how predictable my recklessness was. How easy I made it for him to take away our baby. He told me how I caused it to happen, he told me and he laughed.” _

Frankie’s words hang in the air for a moment before Will is able to swallow this anger and keep the harshness out of his voice when he asks, “Sass, what do you mean he called you?”

“Don’t call me that.” Frankie says quietly and without her usual fight. “Please don’t call me that. He called me that.” 

“Frankie…” 

Taking a deep breath Frankie turns towards him, a look of complete emptiness in her eyes. There’s no emotion on her face at all anymore and Will is suddenly very wary of what she’s about to tell him next. How could it possibly get any worse. 

“He planned it Will, he made sure I wasn’t hurt so I wouldn’t miscarry on the mission. He wanted me to find out after. Find out and get excited. Get excited so he could take it all away. He planned it Will and he laughed when he told me what he’d done.”

_ ************ _

  
  


_ Returning from the clinic exhausted and heartbroken Frankie let herself into her apartment a few hours after she left it. It’s still dark outside, most of the city still sleeping, unaware that they’ve been denied the chance to live in a world where Will Chase gets to be a dad.  _

_ She pulls the bloody sheets from the bed and stuffs them down the garbage shoot in the hall along with the wet boxers from the shower. She knows she won’t ever be able to use either again. She keeps the shirt though. It’s Will’s and she can’t bear to lose even a little bit more of him today.  _

_ She cries silently while she cleans the floors and counter, washing away her blood and trying not to think about how happy she was just a few hours ago. _

_ She wants Will. She wants him to hold her and tell her it will be ok and promise her they’ll try again. She wants to press herself into his chest and let his hands soothe her, she wants to hear him tell her he loves her, and more than anything she wants him to promise her that it wasn’t her fault. _

_ Lying on the bed with his pillow pulled to her chest, her stomach cramps painfully despite the pills the doctor gave her. She tries to breathe evenly while her fingers rub at her hip and she stares out the window at the rising sun.  _

_ The movers will be here in a few hours to take her things to Will’s and she needs to finish packing so she can leave this apartment and never come back. She doesn’t want to be here anymore. She wants to be with Will.  _

_ The sudden ringing of her phone has her wiping the tears from her cheeks with the back of her hand and sitting up though it’s painful to do so.  _

_ Will’s calling from the hotel phone, she assumes when Unknown Caller displays on her phone. It's early still and he’s the only one she knows who likes being awake before the sun.  _

_ Clearing her throat so he hopefully won’t know she’s been crying, she presses the accept button.  _

_ “Hello.” Frankie answers, trying to force steadiness into her voice. _

_ “Good morning Agent Trowbridge, I hope I didn’t catch you at a bad time.” A cheerful voice greets her.  _

_ Ollerman. Frankie is instantly on alert. “What do you want?” _

_ “Oh nothing really, I was just calling to see how you’re feeling, wondering if maybe the morning sickness has kicked in yet.” _

_ Frankie doesn’t respond. She can’t, she’s no longer breathing.  _

_ “Oh wait,” Ollerman cuts in again, “I’m sorry, I should have called and asked that yesterday. You don’t have to worry about that anymore now do you. Now that you’ve killed Chase’s baby.”  _

_ She can hear the smile in his voice and it makes her stomach clench in fear and anger.  _

_ “How…” Frankie’s head is spinning, her heart pounding erratically in her chest.  _

_ “Did you think I wouldn't know, that I wouldn't find out? I’ve been watching you for months Agent Trowbridge, just waiting for the perfect time to burst the little love bubble you and Chase have been living in the last six months.” He’s voice is full of glee and pride and Frankie struggles to breathe when he tells of what he’s seen.  _

_ “Watching you shop for his mother’s birthday, watching you make him banana bread with those extra chocolate chips he loves so much, watching you crawl on top of him and fuck him like you’re a couple of teenagers, hell I even watched you tell him you loved him for the very first time, I’ve never seen a grown man cry so much. So many sickeningly sweet moments of domestic bliss it's hard to remember them all.”  _

_ He’s been watching them for months without them knowing, private moments, intimate moments, vulnerable moments, moments that were only meant for the two of them. The violation Frankie feels makes her hands tremble in anger. _

_ “But when I got your blood work results sent to me last week, I knew the perfect opportunity to end your sweet little game of house had finally come.” _

_ He’s got more people working for him from the inside, Frankie thinks trying to wrap her head around that fact when he starts speaking again. _

_ “I made sure you didn’t know about your sweet little baby boy scout before your little trip to Israel, a little tech support to delay you getting your messages helped with that. I even made sure you weren’t really hurt while you were there, though I understand my boys got a bit touchy feely with you anyway, so I’m going to let Chase killing them slide.”  _

_ They called her Sassy and pretty girl and beautiful when they had her tied up in that warehouse. She was too afraid then to question how they knew, but she knows now and it sends a shiver down her spine.  _

_ “No, I needed you to find out after. I need you to be relieved you didn't get hurt. I needed you to get excited, and hot damn you did get excited didn’t you. I could see it on your face when you left Chase’s place yesterday, after you took all those tests just to be sure. I didn’t know you could smile that big honey, you should do it more often.” _

_ Frankie wants to scream and yell and reach through the phone and kill the man on the other end, but she can’t move, she’s frozen as Ollerman’s words wash over her.  _

_ “I didn’t know Chase wasn’t going to be around for the big show though, suits in Washington took the fun out of that, but I almost like this better. I like that you’re going to have to explain to him how you killed his baby, that you stole from him something that would have made him happy. That you killed his future little boy scout. Yes, I do like this plot twist indeed.”  _

_ She didn’t kill her baby, the doctor said so. There was no trauma, no bruising, it just happens sometimes, the doctor assured her of that. It wasn’t her fault.  _

_ “Will won’t blame me.” Frankie says quietly through gritted teeth. Will loves her, he won’t blame her, he’ll hold her and tell her it will be ok. It wasn’t her fault.  _

_ Ollerman’s spine tingling chuckle echoes through the phone. “Oh but he will. He will and he’ll hate you for what you did, what you stole from him. You fucked up Trowbridge, you made a mistake. Just you.” _

_ “I didn’t.” Frankie seethes. No trauma, no bruising, sometimes it just happens...  _

_ Ollerman laughs again, clearly enjoying himself. “You weren’t supposed to sit and drink at the bar with Ezra were you? That wasn’t the plan. You were supposed to leave the club and go home, if you had none of this would have happened. I wouldn’t have been able to get to you before you found out and Whiskey sidelined you.” _

_ Will would have pulled her from the field if they’d known, no question. It wouldn’t have mattered though, she would have benched herself first.  _

_ “But you just couldn’t resist could you. That reckless streak in you is damn near visible from space, all I had to do was get my guy to drop the tiniest of breadcrumbs and I knew you’d ignore your team, ignore Chase and risk the mission just to prove you can one up everyone else. Always have to push the envelope just a little bit more don’t you Trowbridge. You almost made it too easy.”  _

_ Ice settles in Frankie’s veins at his words. That’s exactly what she did. She didn’t listen, she pushed for more, she took a needless risk and got herself caught. She put her team in danger. She did that. She did that alone.  _

_ “A little mifepristone mixed with some GHB stirred into your pretty pink drink made  _ _ for a sleepytime cocktail, with the added benefit of spontaneous abortion a few days later. I was beginning to think it didn’t work, but alas your late night trip to the clinic confirmed it. Bye bye Baby Chase, killed by your mother because she can’t fucking stay on script.” _

_ Frankie can’t breathe, her vision is swimming and her body has gone numb. No trauma, no bruising but it was her fault, her mistake, her recklessness, she did this. It doesn’t matter that she didn’t know, or that she would have done things differently if she did. She didn’t follow the plan, if she had, if she just did what she was supposed to do for once in her life she wouldn’t have killed her baby.  _

_ “Why?” It’s all she can press past her lips.  _

_ “You took my son from me when you forced me to run, so I took yours from you. Turn around really is fair play.” Ollerman says, in a voice so hard and cruel Frankie can almost feel each word strike her through the phone.  _

_ “You still there?” Ollerman demands when she doesn’t say anything.  _

_ “I’m going to kill you.” Frankie says, voice shaking in rage.  _

_ “No, I don’t think you are. I’m going away for a while. Going to take myself on a little holiday, some fun in the sun if you will, get away from the cold weather.”  _

_ “I’m going to find you and make you suffer.” Frankie vows.  _

_ “Good luck with that. Have a Merry Christmas Sassy, enjoy that gift Chase gives you, if he still wants you to have it that is, it really is perfect for you.” _

_ A click on the other end of the line and the dead air that follows indicate he’s hung up, but Frankie doesn’t move the phone from her ear. She can’t. She can’t think, she can’t move, she can’t breathe.  _

_ Bile fills her throat and she’s puking into her hand before she can force her body to move, barely making it to the sink before she makes a mess.  _

_ Ollerman is right. It was her fault, she did this. She killed her baby, Will’s baby. She made the mistake, she chose to be reckless and not listen, to deviate from the plan and now Will won’t ever hold their child.  _

_ He won’t get to look into the green eyes of their baby, won’t get to teach them how to ride a bike or throw a ball, won’t get to show them how to be a good man or how to determine right from wrong.  _

_ She stole that from him. She did that. _

_ He can’t know. He can’t ever know. It would kill him. It would kill him to know what she did, what someone he loved stole from him.  _

_ He’ll hate her if he does. But worse than that, he’ll try to pretend he doesn’t. He’ll try to be noble and kind and tell her it's not her fault, when they’ll both know deep down that it was. He’ll let himself be hurt by her because he’s selfless and wants to do the right thing, but it will slowly kill him. That’s what Ollerman wants, to make Will suffer, to make them both suffer.  _

_ She can’t let that happen, she can’t let hate consume Will’s beautiful heart, she won’t watch that happen. It’s time for her to do the right thing.  _

_ She needs to leave, she needs to go so he can move on and find someone who won’t take risks and gamble with his life and happiness. Someone better than her, someone who won’t get his child killed.  _

_ Decision made Frankie moves around her apartment stuffing things into her dad’s backpack freezing when she sees the blue wrapped box sitting on the dresser in the bedroom. She should throw it away, get rid of it and pretend it never existed.  _

_ But she can’t.  _

_ Picking it up with shaking hands she fingers the bow, a tear rolling off her cheek onto the box staining it as she does. “I’m sorry Whiskey, I’m so sorry.”  _

_ Stuffing the box in her bag she turns and leaves the room and the apartment. She needs to get to Will’s and clean it out before he gets home.  _

_ *************** _

Will managed to coax Frankie onto the couch as she told him about Ollerman’s brutal phone call. By the time she’s done she’s so emotionally exhausted she’s almost lying on top of him, wedged between his body and the back of the couch, her head on his chest and his arms locking her in place, thumb brushing over her scar, as she sobs and hiccups out even more apologies.

It's quiet now, no sound in the apartment other than her ragged breathing and the occasional sniffle. The April sunshine is dimming and the apartment is blanketed in shadows, but neither make a move to turn on a light. 

Will’s face is covered in tears, his heart is pounding in his chest, and rage is running rampant through his veins, while he slowly runs his hands up and down her back. 

The longer he thinks about what happened, the more he begins to feel guilt mixing in with the rage. He didn’t know about any of it, but it doesn’t matter, she was his to protect and he failed. Pressing a kiss to her head he makes a silent promise; he won’t fail again. 

He needs to talk to Jai, he needs to help make a plan. He needs to kill Ollerman and he needs to make it hurt. But first he needs to comfort Frankie and make sure she’s ok, she comes first. Always. 

“You didn’t know Baby, you didn’t know. You didn’t do anything wrong, it wasn’t your fault.” Will whispers, as she presses herself closer, trembling and fisting his shirt in her hand. 

She’s not leaving again he vows, he’s not letting her go. No matter how many times he needs to tell her he loves her, no matter how many words it takes for him to convince her it wasn’t her fault and that he doesn’t blame her, no matter how long it takes him to make her believe she can trust him, it will be worth it. 

She’s worth it. 

A slammed door in the hallway causes Frankie to jump and begin to push herself away from him, but he’s not ready to let her go so he tightens his arms around her to hold her in place as he whispers in her ear over and over again that it wasn’t her fault no matter what Ollerman said. 

Giving a final shuddering breath Frankie pushes away from him more forcefully and sits up on the couch, but doesn’t move any further than that. 

Sitting up beside her, Will rests his casted hand on her knee and a sliver of hope shivers up his spine when she slowly and softly runs her hand over his cast and plays with the tips of his fingers that poke out of the end. 

“Frankie look at me.” He requests softly, bringing his other hand to her cheek. “It wasn’t your fault.” 

“It was Will, I was reckless, just me. I made the decision not to follow the plan. I did that.”

“Would you have done the same thing if you knew you were pregnant?”

“No, but…”

“But nothing Frankie, you wouldn’t have even gone on the mission. You know that and so do I. As much as we all want to get him, as badly as we want it to be us, if you had known you would have sat out. You would have stayed behind and watched from the Hive, you wouldn’t have even gone to Israel. You wouldn’t have risked it. Ollerman took that choice away from you, away from us. You didn’t know. Ollerman did this not you.”

Removing his hand from her face she holds it in her lap as she responds softly in a voice that begs for him to believe her words. 

“You say it wasn’t my fault and that I did nothing wrong and I know you believe it’s true because you’re happy I’m here and it’s all so new. But what about next month, next year, 10 years from now when you’ve had time to really think about it Will, when emotions aren’t clouding your judgement and you can see clearly what damage I’ve caused.”

Will opens his mouth to deny that his opinion will ever change, but she cuts him off. 

“When you see a little boy with green eyes at the park, or a little girl with pigtails eating gelato. You’ll hate me Will. You’ll try not to, but deep down you will. You’ll always know what I did and you won’t be able to trust me or love me, not really. But you’re too polite to say it, too loyal to leave, too damn chivalrous to break my heart.”

Will wants to argue, wants to tell her how wrong she is and that he could never in a million years hate her, could never walk away from her, but she doesn’t give him the chance. 

Lifting a hand to his face Frankie softly swipes her thumb softly over his cheek, then lips, then chin, almost as if she’s trying to memorize his face, as she looks him in the eyes and begs him to understand.

“I can’t let you live like that Whiskey. I can’t let you live with darkness in your heart and bitterness in your soul. You’re too good. You need to be with someone who’s good like you.”

Will can see in her eyes that she believes everything she said and his already breaking heart shatters in his chest. He can’t for one minute more allow her to believe that any of what she said is true. Can’t let the lies Ollerman filled her head with torment her any longer. He won’t let her suffer, not if he can help it. 

“I don’t want anyone else, I want you Francesca. Just you. We can have our family Frankie, we can have that life together. You and me. Nothing else matters. You just need to trust me. Trust that I love you because of your wild and reckless spirit and I love you because of everything you are and everything we will be together. You need to let me prove to you that I love you more than anything and always will.”

Will can see the smallest glimmer of hope in her eyes as he brushes the hair off her face, but he can see fear even clearer as she tries to hold back a sob by biting down once more on her already abused bottom lip.

“It wasn’t your fault Francesca. I’ll say it every day for the rest of our lives, as many times as you need to hear it. As many times as it takes for you to believe it’s true and a million times after that. I’ll say it, I’ll always say it, forever.” 

Will feels a temor pass over her body and then she’s falling forward into his body once again, arms wrapping around him tightly and whispering his name like a cry of salvation against his neck.

“I love you so much Frankie.” He murmurs against her temple. “Please stay with me. Please don’t leave me again. Please, I can’t survive without you. Not again. I love you too much to let you go.”

Taking a shaky breath she leans away from him, lifts her hand to his face and smiles sadly at him. “I love you too much to stay.”

“Frankie, please let me prove to you that you can trust me, please.” Will pulls her back to him, convinced if he holds her tight enough he can make her stay. 

“I can’t.” She whispers, pulling away and looking him in the eye once more. 

Will sees something new in her eyes, regret maybe, longing perhaps, he can’t place it, but the way her hand is holding onto him like a lifeline and the way she’s shifting her body closer to his, is contradicting her desire to leave. 

“I don’t understand why…” 

“I made a deal.”

  
  


_ ****************** _

_ Frankie texts Jai on the way to Will’s apartment asking him to bring his bug sweeping kit over in an hour, but offering no response to his questions of why. She has something to do first and she doesn’t want witnesses.  _

_ Entering the apartment she takes out her phone, sits at the bar and takes a deep breath, she needs to do this, she needs Will to be safe. She can’t leave until she knows.  _

_ “Call me you bastard, I’m not done talking.” Frankie says loudly into the empty apartment, praying that Ollerman is still listening. _

_ Her phone buzzes less than a minute later, Unknown Caller dancing across its screen. _

_ “This is not an intercom system Agent Trowbridge, you can’t just summon me whenever you desire.” Ollerman cackles over the phone, speaking loudly to be heard over the hum of activity in the background.  _

_ “I want a deal.” Frankie says firmly. _

_ “You’re not going to try this again are you? I thought you were more original than that, going with the let me join your team thing again really?” _

_ “Not that kind of deal.” _

_ “Well now I’m curious. What do you have in mind?” _

_ “You’re life for Will’s.” _

_ “You’re going to have to explain that one to me honey, I don’t see how that works.” _

_ Frankie keeps her voice level and calm as she offers up her deal. Mindful that he’s watching her every move and recording her every word. She needs him to agree, it’s the only way she can keep Will safe, from her and Ollerman both.  _

_ “I’ll agree with one condition.” Ollerman says, after a minute of consideration.  _

_ Frankie’s stomach tightens in fear at what it might be. “What’s that?” _

_ “I want to watch you break him, I want to see him suffer one last time. Do that for me and I’ll agree to your deal. You disappear, I leave Whiskey alone and I...well you won’t need to worry about that anymore now do you.” _

_ Frankie’s heart stops. She should have expected this. She knows how Ollerman likes to watch Will suffer and she knows she has to make it brutal and hurt Will so bad he’ll be left shattered enough to move on when he puts the pieces back together. But it’s better this way, she’d rather break his heart than have it fill with hate.  _

_ Frankie nods her agreement. She can’t make herself say the words. _

__

_ “Now don’t go breaking our deal beautiful, if I find out you’re not playing fair, if I even get a hint of you in my vicinity or meddling in my business I won’t hesitate to visit Whiskey and make sure he knows just how badly you fucked up. Right before I put a bullet in his head.” _

_ “Same goes for you Ollerman, one slip and I’ll find you. One contact, one phone call or text or a fucking carrier pigeon and I’ll use every avenue I have to end you. And it won’t be painless.” _

_ “Oh how I do love your spirit. Don’t worry pretty girl, I’ll stick to the deal. I won’t say a word to Chase, this will just stay between us. He never has to know you killed his baby and then made a deal to hide it from him, it will be our little secret.” _

_ Hanging up Frankie feels dirty and exhausted. She made a deal with the devil to keep a secret from the man she loves more than she ever thought possible.  _

_ Now she needs to lie to her best friend as well. Frankie’s made her living lying to people and keeping secrets, but it’s never felt this wrong before. She’s never felt like she’s sold her soul until right this moment.  _

_ Her parents would be ashamed of her. Jai would be ashamed of her. Will would be ashamed of her. She’s ashamed of herself. _

_ Reaching for the bullet around her neck that isn’t there anymore, Frankie’s hand wraps tightly into a fist wishing Will would have fixed it before he went to Washington so she’d have it with her when she left.  _

_ “I’m so sorry Whiskey.” She whispers into the air of the empty apartment before sliding off her stool to get to work. She needs to erase herself from his apartment, she needs to vanish from his life.  _

_ ************* _

“What deal? What are you talking about?” Will questions, hand going slack in hers.

Pulling away slightly Frankie looks ashamed and nervous, no longer making eye contact with Will when she speaks softly with a hollow voice. 

“I made a deal with Ollerman. I leave and never come back, never go after him seeking revenge, never help you take him down, never see you again. In return he leaves you alone. You get to live your life, you get to be happy Will.”

She looks back to him, staring into his eyes and imploring him to understand what she did to keep him safe. There’s a hitch in her voice like she’s trying to talk around a sob threatening to escape, he can hear her losing the battle as her voice begins to shake with her next words. 

“You get to find someone good to love and get married, have a family, grow old, be happy. You get the life you deserve without fear. Will, you get everything you always wanted.”

“I don’t get you. I don’t want the rest of it if I can’t have you.” He needs her to know that, needs her to believe it. 

“I can’t Will, I can’t stay. That’s not the deal.” Frankie whispers, dropping her eyes and wiping at the tears that stain her cheeks. 

“So I get a life you assume I would want without you and Ollerman doesn’t fear revenge, but what do you get? What do you get with this deal, what did he offer you?” Will asks quietly, trying not to let his building frustration show. 

“I get to know you’re safe.” Frankie lifts her eyes to his, a slight frown on her face and confusion in her eyes as though it should be obvious. “I get to know you’re safe from him, that's all that matters to me.”

“That’s it? You have to spend the rest of your life alone, hurting and hiding to keep me safe from him? Frankie, no I won’t let you do that.” Grabbing her hands and squeezing them tight Will fights to keep his voice from raising and scaring her off. 

“It’s better this way.” Frankie whispers, head bowing, her eyes hiding from his.

“Better how Frankie, how is it better if we’re not together?” 

Pulling her hands from his, Frankie shakes her head slowly, rasps out a breath and a tremor passes through her body before she can force out her next words, “He promised me never to tell. That you would never know about the baby, you would never know what I did. If I stayed away you’d never find out and I wouldn’t ever have to watch you hate me.”

“I’m never going to hate you.”

“Will”

“No Frankie stop,” Will cuts her off, forcefully but not unkindly, grips her shoulders then tilts her chin with one hand encouraging her to look at him “you don’t get to decide I’m going to hate you without even giving me a chance to prove I won’t. It won’t ever happen. I won’t get over you, I won’t find someone else to love, and I won’t ever have a life or family with someone that isn’t you. Without you I’m never going to be happy, not ever, it’s not possible. You are my happiness Frankie, without you I’m just breathing.”

She wants to believe him, he can see it in her eyes. He can see the tiny rays of hope and love mixed with the sadness and fear, he can see that as much as she’s trying to fight it, she wants to give in and surrender herself to him. But the guilt Ollerman convinced her she needs to carry is still holding her back. 

Tears are streaming down both of their faces and Will can see that Frankie is torn, the colour has fallen from her face, her eyes have gone dark. She quickly pulls out of hold and moves from the couch to pace the room, arms wrapped tightly around herself, she’s rubbing her hip and mumbling to herself words that Will can’t understand. 

Like a moth to a flame he rises from the couch and grabs her as she turns to pace in the other direction, startling her and taking advantage of her momentary lapse in awareness to wrap his arms around her and hold her tight, burying his face in her neck, one hand in her hair, praying that she won’t push him away. 

To his surprise she doesn’t, she wraps her arms around him and clings to him just as tightly as she murmurs into his ear. 

“I hurt you Will. I lied to you and I hurt you. I told you I didn’t love you and I watched you suffer. I did that Will. I let him watch me do that. I let him see you in pain. I let him break us.” 

_ ************** _

_ When Jai arrives they find a combined total of 24 audio and video bugs in Will’s apartment. Every inch of the place was covered. How could she be so stupid.  _

_ “Don’t tell Will.”  _

_ “Frankie…” _

_ “Please.” _

_ “What’s going on?” _

_ “Please don’t ask me that Jai.” _

_ “Francesca.” _

_ “No.” She says firmly, drinking a shot of tequila right from the bottle. She started drinking not long after she got off the phone with Ollerman, she’s lost track of how much she’s had by now, but she doesn’t care it’s helping to numb the pain.  _

_ “Wanna tell me what’s in the box?” Jai asks, motioning to the small box sitting on the counter next to her backpack. _

_ “No.” She found it on the doorstep when she got here. No label, or note, but as soon as she opened it she knew who it was from. Inside was her black lace bra, still covered in blood. A reminder of the mistake she made.  _

_ “I’m leaving him.” Frankie whispers quietly around the lump in her throat threatening to turn into a sob.  _

_ “Why?” Jai whispers back, confusion clear on his face.  _

_ “I don’t love him.” She lies, she thinks it might be the hardest lie she’s ever told.  _

_ “Bullshit.” Jai accuses, voice hard and nostrils flaring.  _

_ She knew it wasn’t going to be easy but she does it anyway, the lies filling her mouth like acid and hellfire. “I don’t want to pretend I’m what he wants anymore. I’m not her Jai, I’m not the girl that’s going to give him the life he wants.” _

_ “Lie to yourself if you need to, but don’t you dare lie to me Francesca.”  _

_ Angry now, Jai is staring at her with disappointment and shame. He’s never in all their years together ever looked at her like that. She closes her eyes against the image.  _

_ “I need to go Jai.” She whispers so softly she’s not sure if he hears her. _

_ “Did he do something to you?” Voice softer now but still angry, Jai’s hand latches on to her shaking fingers.  _

_ “No.” _

_ “You promise?” _

_ “Yes.” _

_ “Francesca,” Jai says softly, moving his hand to her face and waiting for her eyes to open and look at him. “Promise me you’re safe, promise me that no one is forcing you to do this. If someone is trying to hurt you Frankie let me help.” _

_ “No one is making me do this Jai, I swear, I’m doing this on my own. I just need to go.” _

_ “I’ll get my bag and we can go together.” _

_ “No, not this time.” She shakes her head sadly, and moves her hand to his face. “I need to go alone. I need you to be here and make sure he’s ok. Please Jai, promise me you’ll stay. That you’ll look after him.”  _

_ They stare at each other for a long time, each holding the other's gaze and having a silent conversation like only they can. _

_ “Will you call me?” Jai asks, a tremble in his voice that makes her heart shudder knowing she was the one that caused it.  _

_ “No. Maybe. I don’t know.” She truly doesn’t know.  _

_ “Can I call you?”  _

_ She doesn’t answer, she’s not sure she’ll be ready to answer if he does. He knows the number to the phone she’ll take with her either way, he’s the only one that does. _

_ “When are you leaving?” Jai asks, tears in his eyes, and sorrow in his voice. _

_ “Tonight. I just have to break his heart first.” _

  
  


_ ********** _

  
  


_ Jai helps her pack her things and makes arrangements for them to be removed. She tells him to burn it all, everything here and at her apartment. She won’t need it ever again, she’s not coming back.  _

_ He rents her a storage locker instead.  _

_ He left about an hour ago, hugging her goodbye and telling her he loves her. He took all the bugs with him to be destroyed but left her with one, she’ll destroy it soon, but right now it’s clipped on her bag with a clear view of the room.  _

_ Ollerman wants to watch and the more she thinks about it, the more she sees the benefits to him seeing it happen. She wants him to see that she’s left and won’t be coming back. She wants him to see that he broke her and Will and there’s no need for further revenge. She wants him to see he can leave Will alone, that he can let him live his life without interference. They won’t be a threat anymore. She needs him to see so he’ll keep his end of the deal.  _

_ Sitting at the counter she sips her tequila and waits. Will should be home soon. His plane landed over an hour ago, he’s probably already been to the bar only to find her missing and is coming looking for her. She’s not sure how many times he’s called. It doesn’t matter, she won’t be answering the number he has ever again. Jai took her phone along with the rest of her possessions when he left.  _

_ She hears the far away dinging of the arriving elevator in the hall and feels her body tense. She puts down her glass and stands facing the door, bracing for the fight she knows is coming.  _

_ She doesn’t want to do this. _

_ The key twists in the lock and a haggard looking Will stumbles through the door, a look of relief washing over him when his eyes land on her.  _

_ “Oh thank God you’re here, I was worried.” He sighs out and moves towards her hands stretched out to wrap her in a hug. “You weren’t at the bar and you didn’t answer your phone. I...Sass?” He stops when she holds her hand out to stop him.  _

_ He can’t touch her, if he touches her she won’t be able to do this.  _

_ “Why are you so pale? Are you ok, are you sick?” He asks softly when she doesn’t say anything. He looks concerned, she can’t look at him.  _

_ “I’m leaving.” She whispers, looking down at the floor. _

_ “Do you need to go to the doctor? I’ll take you.” _

_ “No Will.” She starts, then clears her throat to steady her voice and raises her head to look him in the eye. “I’m leaving. I’m leaving you.” _

_ “What, Frankie, what are you talking about?” He looks so adorably baffled, her heart aches. His eyes are searching hers wildly then moving to her backpack on the counter, she can see fear leaking into their emerald core.  _

_ “I don’t love you.” _

_ “What are you talking about, yes you do.” He tries to desperately reason. _

_ She expected anger, she was ready for a big blow up fight, she was ready to go to war. But instead he’s giving her nothing but sadness and fear.  _

_ She’s not sure she’s going to survive hurting him like this.  _

_ It doesn’t matter as long as he survives it.  _

_ “I don’t love you and I don’t want to do this anymore.” 12 words. That’s all it takes to break Will Chase. To make tears fill his eyes, and his face crumble into a look of grief so deep she wants to look away.  _

_ But she doesn’t, she holds his gaze and uses every bit of strength she has to keep her eyes dry and her voice steady. She can cry later. She has a job to do now. She has to hurt him so he can be free of her, and safe from Ollerman. She refuses to make another mistake. _

_ “Sassy no…” _

_ “Don’t call me that.” She pushes out harshly, Ollerman called her that. She doesn't want to be reminded.  _

_ Grabbing her bag off the counter she moves towards the door. But he grabs hold of the strap as she passes him. _

_ “Why are you doing this?” He pleads, reaching for her face and holding it tight and tries to rest his forehead against hers. _

_ She can’t let him do this, she can’t let him touch her and hold her and offer her comfort. She wants nothing more than to feel his arms wrap around her and hear him whisper that everything will be ok in her ear.  _

_ But she knows it won’t. Not if she stays with him. Not if he finds out what she did. She refuses to let him carry that brand of hatred in his heart. He can get over her not loving him, his heart will mend. He can be happy again, but not with her. _

_ Pushing him away harshly he stumbles back. _

_ “Don’t touch me. Don’t you dare touch me.” Frankie yells out, she’s losing the battle to keep her emotions in check, tears filling her eyes and rolling down her cheeks. _

_ “Francesca” He breathes, and starts towards her again, only to have her push him away even harder.  _

_ Backing towards the door she’s got her hand on the knob when she responds. “I’m leaving and I’m not coming back. Find yourself someone new to play house with. Someone else to make you banana bread, to watch your stupid movies with, someone else to hold your hand and eat your ice cream. I’m done.” _

_ “Please Francesca I don’t want anyone else, I want you.” _

_ “Well I don’t want you.” The lie tastes sour in her mouth, and she wants to take it back as soon as she says it. His face is streaked with tears, he’s fallen to his knees and he’s got his hands in front of him like he’s ready to beg her to stay. She can’t stay.  _

_ “Frankie.” It’s a pitiful whine that comes out of this mouth, and she has to fight the urge to run to him and bury herself in his chest.  _

_ “Goodbye Whiskey.” She doesn’t look back as she exits the apartment, slamming the door behind her. She moves quickly to the stairs running down them as fast as she can. He’ll chase her she knows and she’s worried that if he catches her, she won’t be able to resist.  _

_ She doesn’t stop when she reaches the street. She runs across the road and into the dark alley between two buildings and waits.  _

_ No more than 30 seconds later she sees him burst out of the same door head whipping from side to side trying to find her. He looks lost and devastated and even though she’s far away she can feel the fear and grief in his eyes.  _

_ Hailing a cab he jumps in and in a moment he’s gone. On his way to the bar or her apartment she isn’t sure, and it doesn’t matter, he won’t find her.  _

_ One minute and 54 seconds, that’s how long it took her to blow up her life.  _

_ Removing the bug from her bag she holds it up to her face and sends one last message to Ollerman before dropping it to the ground and stomping on it with her boot. “I hope you rot in hell.” _

_ She’s halfway around the world, and as far from the man who holds her heart as she can get before the sun raises the next morning.  _

*******************

They cling to each other as both replay the day she left over in their heads. Both reliving the pain, the heartbreak and the devastation over her walking out the door. 

“I broke us, Will. I let him break us.” Frankie sobs into his neck.

“We’re not broken Baby, just a little cracked, we can fix it I promise. We can fix it if you just stay with me. Trust me and stay.”

“I don’t know what to do.” She sounds so lost and small when she says it that he can’t help but hold her that much tighter.

“Just stay.” He whispers in her ear, while he rocks her gently, hands dancing across her hips, fingers slipping under her shirt to ghost over her scar causing her to sigh and press her body impossibly closer.

She’s not leaving him again, Will repeats his promise again to himself, pressing a kiss to Frankie’s temple while she shudders against him, face hidden in his neck, more apologies falling from her lips. 

There’s no way he’s letting her go. He’ll run with her if that’s what she wants to do, but he won’t let her leave him behind. They’ll get through this together, they’ll make it. He refuses to believe otherwise. He just needs her to believe it too. 

“I love you Francesca. I’ll love you forever, nothing is ever going to change that.” Will murmurs, interrupting her string of seemingly endless confessions of guilt. 

“I love you too, Whiskey. I never stopped, I love you and I’m sorry I said I didn’t.” She replies, voice thick with emotion. 

Hearing her say it, hearing the truth of her words, sends a thrill through Will’s body and spurs him into action. He presses a kiss to her temple, her forehead, her cheek, the corner of her mouth. Everywhere he can reach, but not her lips. Just like on that day in Prague he knows she needs to be the one to cross that line. She needs to trust him enough to let him kiss her. 

And with a small sigh that sounds more like relief she lifts her hands to his face and guides his lips to hers. It’s as light a touch as possible, and neither move to make it more, both content just to linger close to the other and bask in the familiar and missed. 

A banging on the door and the yelling of Will's name interrupts their kiss and has Frankie releasing her hold on him, but he refuses to let her go far.

Whatever happens next they do it together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WTF come on we were just getting to the good stuff and someone shows up at the door are you kidding me!


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Grief does funny things to people...

“Will? Will, are you in there? It's me, your favourite boy wonder.” Standish yells from outside the door, while knocking and jiggling the knob.

The tension in Will’s body eases at the same time he feels Frankie’s body snapping to attention, back shooting ramrod straight. 

“Maybe if we’re really quiet he’ll go away.” Will whispers, before leaning closer to Frankie and pressing his lips a little firmer against hers.

“Will let me in man, there’s a spider out here and it’s looking like it wants to bite me and we both know I’m not ready for the responsibilities of superpowers right now.”

Will pulls back and sighs.

“Guess not.” Frankie murmurs, with a look on her face that tells Will she’s as displeased with the interruption as he is. 

Shooting her a look of longing and with one last kiss pressed to Frankie’s forehead he backs away calling out as he does. “Hold on Standish, I’ll be right there.”

“Wait.” Frankie whispers, grabbing Will’s hand before he gets too far. “I don’t want him to know I’m here.”

“Why? He’s going to find out you’re back eventually.” Will asks, eyebrows snapping together in confusion. 

“Please not yet, please Will, I’m not sure…” Frankie trails off, looking panicked, fear making its way back into the eyes he thought he’d calmed. 

“But you’re staying, you’re not leaving again. Right Frankie?” Will asks, squeezing her fingers tight and holding his breath.

“Please just not yet Will, please.” She sidesteps his question and that has Will forgetting all about Standish and the constant banging at the door. 

“Frankie?”

“Please Whiskey.” The fear in her eyes growing as she pleads with him.

He can’t refuse her.

Will sighs, and moves to rest his forehead against hers, “Yeah ok, I’ll get rid of him.”

“Thank you.” She whispers, relief clear in her tone. Pulling back, she gives him a quick half smile, squeezes his hands and is gone, down the hall and out of sight before Will can blink. 

Unlocking the door Will barely has the knob fully turned before Standish is pushing himself into the apartment and quickly closing the door behind him in a desperate effort to get away from the menacing arachnoid. 

“Finally, I’ve been waiting for hours.” Standish huffs, leaning back against the door once it’s firmly shut.

“Less than a minute.” Will corrects. “What are you doing here?”

“You haven’t answered your phone all day. I’ve left you like a bazillion messages and texts.” Standish accuses with narrowed eyes. 

“Sorry, I was really tired and I turned my phone off to get some sleep.” Not a complete lie, but close enough that Will feels a slight stab of pain in his stomach that has nothing to do with still not having ate anything. He doesn’t like lying to his family. 

A big smile appears on Standish’s face and he brings an arm up to clap Will on the shoulder hard enough that he has to stifle a groan. 

“Well you're awake now and I know you’re probably bored, and desperate to see people who aren’t trying to stab you with needles all the time, so I brought my Wii. We can hang out and play Mario Kart, you can be any character you want. Except Princess Peach, we have a nice thing going and I don’t want to ruin it.” Standish offers with an eyebrow wiggle that both amuses and causes slight alarm to rise in Will.

“Broken arm Standish, can’t exactly hold the controller.” Will points out, waving his arm for emphasis, a smile on his lips he hopes will help soften the rejection.

Looking proud of himself, Standish puffs out his chest, “Thought of that and don’t worry I brought the steering wheels. And just so it’s fair, cause I know you have a thing about fairness and cheating, I brought a boxing glove to wear on my left hand so I don’t have an advantage.”

“That’s very thoughtful Standish, but I’m kinda in the middle of something and I’m not feeling all that well. The meds really mess with my stomach so I’m just going to have something to eat and go back to bed.” 

Will loves the kid and he’s touched that he came by to check on him, but he really wants to get back to Frankie. He’ll make it up to Standish later he promises himself. 

Standish doesn’t take the hint. Will’s not sure why he expected him too. 

“That’s cool, I haven’t eaten in like an hour and it’s only like 4 o’clock so it’s a little early for dinner, but I guess old people eat early. What the heck you talked me into it, I’ll eat with you.” Standish says, pushing past Will and moving deeper into the apartment, dropping his bag on the floor and shrugging off his jacket. 

“Hey we should order pizza from that place that puts the noodles on top.”

Will holds in a sigh and tries again, “Standish I don’t think that’s a good idea, I should probably just…”

“No worries we can get burgers instead. Oh we should get tacos! I love tacos! We can get them even though it’s not Tuesday right? That’s not a real rule I don't think.”

“Standish...” Third time’s the charm right?

“Oh I almost forgot. I got you a present! Susan said it was wildly inappropriate and I wasn’t allowed to give it to you at the hospital, but I just know you’re going to love it.” Standish exclaims bending down and digging in his bag while muttering something to himself that Will doesn’t pay attention to as his eyes look longingly down the hall towards the bedroom Frankie has retreated to. 

“Well, well, well, what is this? Agent Chase you’ve been holding out on me.” Standish’s glee filled voice breaks through Will’s fog of longing.

“What?” Will asks in confusion, tearing his eyes from the hall and moving them back to Standish.

“You sly dog, not even home 24 hours and already working on building up your stamina with a little endurance training.” A gleeful smirk plays on Standish’s lips as he waves the box of condoms Will had accidentally kicked under the table in his face. 

“Standish stop, give me those.” Will reaches out and grabs the box he’s been trying not to think about Frankie having since he first saw it fall out of her bag. 

Relinquishing the box with a playful clicking of his tongue, a joyous gleam grows in Standish’s eyes as fast as the smile on his face as he throws himself fully into a barrage of questions. 

“Who’s the luck lady? Oh is it the vixen across the hall who’s always trying to get in your pants? Is she here now? Is that what you’re busy doing? I’m proud of you man it’s about time you get back out there. Ladies around the world will be lining up once they hear you’re back on the market. Oh can I be your wingman?”

“I’m not back on the market Standish” Will quickly denies, nothing could be further from the truth, “and even if I were, I certainly wouldn’t be entertaining my neighbour.” Will says, letting annoyance leak into his voice hoping Standish will get the hint and drop it. 

Shockingly he does not. 

“Well if you’re not going to, can I? She seems just the right amount of crazy for me.” Standish asks, eyes lighting up at the prospect. 

“You go right ahead kiddo, you have my blessing, in fact why don’t you go try right now.” Will suggests, feeling only slightly guilty about sending the manchild into the viper pit. 

Wrapping his arm around the young hacker's shoulders and guiding him to the door, Will politely tries again to dismiss his much loved but currently unwanted guest. “Thanks for stopping by, but it’s been a long day. I’m tired and want to take a shower and go to bed.” 

“Do you think I’d have a shot? She seems pretty hung up on you.” Standish asks, thankfully focusing more on the potential of a rendezvous with Nicky than Will’s dismissal. 

“Please, as soon as she sees how awesome you are she’ll forget all about me. You’re great kiddo, she’s not going to know what hit her.” Will encourages with a smile, while also easing his own guilt by promising himself he’ll rescue Standish later if Nicky takes the bait. 

“Thanks Dad, you always give the best pep talks.” Standish replies with a shy smile, shrugging on his jacket and grabbing his bag to leave. 

“I try.” Will responds with a slight laugh, while opening up the door and holding it wide only to be taken by surprise when Standish throws himself into his arms and hugs him tight.

“I’m so glad you’re home and ok.” Standish mutters into Will’s shoulder.

“Me too kiddo, me too. I’ll call you in a few days and we can get that pizza ok.” Will offers, as Standish lets him go and takes a step into the hallway. 

“Ok, I’ll see you….” Standish stops mid sentence, his eyebrows pulling together in confusion before a look of hostility overtakes his eyes and he pushes his way past a surprised Will, moving back into the apartment.

“Where is she?” Standish’s voice has gone cold, and the unfamiliarity of that tone coming from him puts Will immediately on the defensive. 

“Pardon?”

“Where is she?” Standish repeats almost in a yell, as he pulls Frankie’s backpack off the counter and shakes it in Will’s direction.

Will doesn’t have a chance to answer before Standish drops the bag and is yelling her name down the hall.

“Standish stop, she’s not…”

“Frankie!” Standish yells again, ignoring Will and moving towards the hall and the room Will knows Frankie is in.

“Stop.” Will yells over Standish, grabbing his arm to pull him back.

Standish whips around towards Will, shrugging off his hand, eyes flashing in anger and hurt. 

The two men stare at each other, Standish with ice in his eyes and Will with defensiveness in his. Though he’s confused as to why he needs it. He’s opening his mouth to ask when he’s interrupted by Frankie entering the room and calling both their attention. 

“Stop yelling Standish, they can hear you in New Jersey.”

*****************

Frankie isn’t proud of the fact that she’s eavesdropping on Will and Standish. She had every intention of not doing just that. She was going to sit quietly, maybe text Jai and wait for Will to give her the all clear.

But when she walked into the bedroom the first thing she saw was that black and white photo on the dresser. The one from the plane after Will pulled those men off her. The one taken just hours after she made the mistake that ruined more than just her life. The only one that shows her with Will’s baby in her belly. The last one taken before her world was destroyed.

She can’t look at it, can’t bear to be close to it and the memories it brings. She wants Will to hold her again, she wants him to chase away those memories and ease the pain they bring. 

In an childish effort to escape the image, she turns her back to it and stays by the door, letting Will’s voice soothe her as it echoes down the hall. 

She didn’t realize how much she missed Standish. His endless streams of questions, his incessant cluelessness, his elation for all things tech and his naive views of the world used to annoy her to no end. 

But listening to him babble with excitement about video games and food she’s struck by how much she’s missed him and he’s perpetual teenage boy persona. The fact that he’s here to check on Will makes her feel guilty about hiding from him, but she’s not ready yet. 

She selfishly wants it to be just her and Will, just for a while longer. Just until she’s sure it’s safe to stay. Until she knows Will is sure about her and safe from Ollerman. 

Frankie listens to Standish ignore Will’s attempts to send him home and is smiling to herself thinking about how she got rid of the Playboy’s at the hospital and what the look on Will’s face might be when Standish gives him whatever new and inappropriate gift he’ll offer, when talk of condoms steals the smile from her lips and the breath from her lungs. 

_Shit Shit Shit._ She didn’t know they fell out of her bag. She didn’t see them on the floor. 

Her heart seizes her chest and a fresh wave of guilt washes over her. She never had the chance to tell him. She never explained. 

There’s a million questions playing in her mind, thoughts bouncing around from one what if to the next. Frankie is no longer listening to the men in the other room, she couldn’t hear them even if she wanted to, her heart is pounding too hard, her breath too ragged.

Her name being bellowed in anger draws her attention from the spiral she’s tumbling into and has her blinking away the flood threatening to fall from her eyes. 

“ _Frankie!_ ”

She hears Standish angrily call again. Then Will's harsh command for him to stop. The voices have gotten closer and Frankie can hear them scuffling. She can’t hide any longer, she won’t let Will get hurt trying to block Standish from getting to her. 

Taking a deep breath, Frankie swallows her tears, dries her eyes, steps out into the hall and makes her way to the living room. 

“Stop yelling Standish, they can hear you in New Jersey.” She pushes out with as much sass as she can muster, and watches as both men freeze at her entrance. 

She doesn’t look at Will, she can’t. She saw the box of condoms in his hand before she spoke and she doesn’t know what level of disappointment or betrayal she’ll find on his face. She’s not ready for either yet.

“Why are you here?” Standish spits out in her direction. 

Standish doesn’t move closer but he does move his body so it’s between her and Will almost as if he’s trying to protect him from her. The anger in his voice, and the hatred in his eyes does nothing to stop the wave of affection she has for him when he does. 

Frankie opens her mouth to speak but Will beats her to it. 

“Standish, calm down.”

“I won’t calm down. Why is she here Will? She doesn’t get to be here, not now, not after what she did.”

Frankie closes her arms across her chest and clenches her jaw in an attempt to keep her emotions and language in check, as she watches Standish grab the condom’s back from Will. 

“Is that what these are for? You came here for this? He gets hurt and you run back for a booty call when he’s drugged up and vulnerable?” Standish accuses her, rage, disgust and disbelief in his tone. 

Will shoots her an sympathetic look and tries again, “Standish just listen for a minute ok. Let her talk, let her expla…”

“I don’t want an explanation from her.” Standish yells, pointing an accusatory finger in Frankie’s direction. “I don’t want anything from her. She needs to go Will, she needs to go back to whatever rock she was hiding under and never come back. She’s a parasite Will. She’s a fucking abandoner, and homewreaker and traitor and bitch and we don’t need her.”

Each word feels like a punch to the gut, but Frankie remains calm and silent. Will does not. 

“That’s enough Standish.” Will says harshly, fist clenched at his sides and fire lighting his eyes.

“It’s ok Will. Let him have his say. I deserve it.” Frankie says softly, eyes on Standish. 

“No you don’t, “Will replies, turning towards her slowly. “He doesn’t know.” 

“It doesn’t matter, it's his truth and he should get his chance to say it.” Frankie says, with a slight nod in Standish’s direction. 

She’s ready for it. Chin raised, shaking hands hidden, eyes fighting to stay dry. She’s ready. Or she thought she was anyway. 

“You don’t get to be here Frankie.” Standish starts his assault directly at her and with a level of brutality Frankie didn’t know he was capable of. “You don’t get to swoop in and mess with his head and play house like nothings changed. You don’t get to pretend like you didn’t hurt us all. You don’t get to come back and act like it’s all ok.”

“That’s not what I’m…”Frankie starts, but is cut off harshly. 

“You left Frankie, you left and you didn’t care about the mess you made and the people you hurt. You didn’t care that we’d miss you or that Jai would be lost or that Will would be devastated. All you cared about was your damn self.” Standish finishes on snarl taking a step towards Frankie and for the first time ever Frankie finds herself wary of him. 

“Standish I didn’t mean…” Frankie tries again, but this time it’s Will that steps in and cuts her off by moving in front of her. 

“That’s enough.” Will’s voice comes out hard and fast. 

But Standish ignores him and the physical obstacle as he continues his assault, a finger pointed directly at her to clear any confusion as to who he was talking to. 

“You weren’t here to see the mess you made. You weren’t here to watch him fall apart, to see him become someone I didn’t even recognize. You weren’t here lying in bed every night wondering if this was going to be the night you get the call that Will ate his gun, or swallowed a bottle of pills, or slit his wrist.” Standish is breathing heavy and his voice has turned from anger to threatening. 

“You don’t get to come back when we’ve all worked for months to put him back together. You don’t get to take him away from us again.” Tears are filling Standish’s eye as he growls at her, hating ringing true in every word.

But Frankie is not focusing on the hatred anymore. She’s too busy picturing Will putting a gun in his mouth and pulling the trigger. She did that to him. She made him lose that much of himself, she made him lose that much hope. She did that with the choices she made, the actions she took. 

Moving her eyes to Will she finds him looking at her with apprehension and shaking his head as if begging her not to believe Standish. But one look at the younger agent confirms the truth, the fear that Will might have hurt himself because of her was real, and tears of renewed guilt and shame fill her eyes so fast she has to shut them to keep them from falling. 

“We survived without you Frankie and I’m not going to let you come back and fucking ruin it. You’re not part of our team anymore. You’re not a member of this family.” Standish finishes with a harsh whisper. One last nail in the coffin of guilt that has the tears escaping her eyes and dripping down her cheeks. 

“I’m sorry.” It’s all she can choke out around the sob threatening to escape her chest. 

“I don’t care.” Is all Standish says back.

“Frankie.” Will whispers, moving towards her, stopping when she raises her hand. 

Clearing her throat and swiping at the tears on her cheeks Frankie raises her eyes to look at Standish. “Thank you for being a friend to him, Standish. You’re a good man. He’s lucky to have you.”

“You shouldn’t have left.” Standish says quietly, looking directly at her, the hatred in his eyes replaced with anguish.

Frankie doesn’t respond, just holds his gaze. 

“You shouldn’t have come back.” Standish adds even quieter. 

“I know.” Frankie nods in agreement even as Will’s shaking his head.

“Standish you need to leave.” Will commands quietly, turning is back on Frankie and facing Standish directly. 

Standish’s eyes flicker away from Frankie to Will then back to Frankie again. With a resigned sigh he slaps the box of condoms on Will’s chest, and holds them there until Will takes them from him. 

“She doesn’t deserve you man.” Standish sighs, then turns and walks out of the apartment, slamming the door behind him and leaving Frankie and Will staring after him in silence. 

*****************

“Frankie” Will calls softly, moving towards her and brushing a stray hair off her face. 

“Not yet Will.” Frankie murmurs quietly, eyes closed, head bent, hand trembling as she moves it to his chest holding it over his heartbeat. 

Her lips are moving in silent speech as she pulls in one deep breath after another and tries to calm herself. He wishes she would let him help, but he knows better than to try when she doesn’t want him to. 

They stand like that for a minute or two before a cramp hits Will’s stomach and causes him to inhale sharply and grab at his ribs. 

Frankie’s eyes snap open and she looks at him in concern. 

“It’s nothing, just a cramp it’s fine.” He tries to reassure her with a smile that he knows must look more like a grimace. He needs to be looking after her right now, not the other way around. 

“You told Standish you had a stomach ache.” Frankie says softly, searching his face. “When was the last time you ate?”

“Last night, but I’m fine Frankie, the pills they just…”

“You need to eat something, you need to eat to get better. Especially with those pills Will, they’ll tear up your stomach if you don’t.” Frankie frowns in concern.

“I don’t care about my stomach Frankie.” He doesn’t, he wants to talk about what Standish said and he really wants to talk about her never leaving again. 

“Well I do. Sit down, I’ll make you something to eat.”

“Frankie we need to talk.”

“So talk, while I cook. You’ve always been good at that.” She counters with a forced smile. 

“Frankie” He tries again, but she’s moved past him into the kitchen and is already assessing the groceries Susan had delivered the day before. 

Pulling a half dozen items out of the fridge Frankie ignores Will’s attempts to get her attention and gets to work. Pulling spatulas and measuring cups from their drawers, pans off the wall and spices from the rack without missing a beat. 

Will sits at the counter and watches her flutter gracefully around the small kitchen like she owns it. She doesn’t have to ask where anything is. She moved it all to where she wanted it to be not long after it was clear to both of them she would be using his kitchen more often than her own. 

**********

_“Damn it, I can’t find anything in here.” Will hears Frankie mutter, as she closes a third drawer in under a minute. “Where’s your colander?” she asks, turning towards him and eyeing him from her spot in the kitchen._

_“My what?” Will responds, pausing in his mission of setting the table._

_“Your colander.”_

_“Yeah, I’m going to need more information than that Sass.”_

_“To drain the spaghetti.”_

_Light dawning Will points her in the right direction, “Oh a strainer. It’s in the cabinet with the Tupperware.”_

_“That makes no sense.” Frankie snarks, while she opens the correct cabinet to retrieve the searched for contraption._

_“Sure it does, I bought it at a Tupperware party.” Will defends, while placing forks and knives in their proper positions on the table._

_“You went to a Tupperware party?” Frankie pauses and turns towards him, a look of amusement dancing across her face._

_“They have some cool stuff.” Will exclaims._

_Frankie just snorts and turns back to her pot of sauce, stirring it and mumbling something about his dorkiness and loving him in spite of it. Will’s pretty sure she thinks he can’t make out her words, but he does and he smiles feeling like a million bucks._

_“Ok I just need a trivet and I think we’re ready.” Frankie announces, interrupting his thoughts of how lucky he is._

_“A trivet, you say.” Will stalls, searching his brain for what she might be referring to and coming up empty._

_“Yes just a small one though the saucepan isn’t that big.” Frankie responds while turning off the burners and setting the stirring spoon in the sink._

_“Is that an Irish word, cause I have no idea what you’re talking about.” Will admits. She likes to do that sometimes, use fancy words for common objects just to mess with people, though she usually only gets away with it with Standish._

_“A pot holder Will.” Frankie says, amusement once again ringing in her voice._

_“Right, yes. In the drawer with the tongs.”_

_“Your kitchen makes no sense. How do you live like this? How does Will Chase, a man who is organized down to the very last detail have such a disorganized and dysfunctional kitchen?”_

_“I don’t know. My girlfriend at the time organized everything when I moved in.”_

_“Was your girlfriend a complete idiot?” Frankie sasses, bringing the now mixed bowl of pasta to the table and setting it on the aforementioned trivet._

_“No,” Will defends, “she was just young and didn’t spend any time in the kitchen and I didn’t want to hurt her feelings so I didn’t say anything, then I just kinda got used to it I guess.” He finishes with a shrug._

_“How young?” Frankie asks, surveying him with one hand on her hip and an eyebrow cocked in both amusement and curiosity._

_“Hmmmmm.” Will mumbles, pretending not to have heard her, while he dishes out some pasta on both of their plates._

_Frankie’s eyes narrow. “How young Will? We talking Gigi young or…”_

_“Maybe a little younger.” Will admits, avoiding eye contact and sprinkling parmesan on his noodles._

_“Pervert.” Frankie accuses, but the smirk she’s got on her face softens the assessment._

_“Hey, it was a long time ago and I was only a few years older than her at the time!” Will cries, and moves to the counter to grab their wine glasses._

_“Sure you were.” She mocks, her smirk deepening into a smile._

_“I was!”_

_“Where are the serviettes? No, let me guess, under the sink with the dish soap?” Frankie teases, moving past him and back into the kitchen, former girlfriend already forgotten._

_“Watch it Sass, your snooty boarding school education is showing with all those high-falutin words. And no, the napkins are in the drawer with the dish towels. A perfectly reasonable place for them to be.” Will retorts, lightly patting her ass as she walks by, earning him a wink and a smirk for his efforts._

_They continue to banter over dinner and clean up about names for common household objects. Saucepan vs pot, cutlery vs silverware, pitcher vs jug, even what exactly a spatula is and how two very different tools couldn’t possibly have the same name, with both defending their reasoning._

_In the end they decide to agree to disagree about most items, though Frankie refuses to admit she’s wrong about more than one of them._

_Three hours later, stretched out, Frankie squeezed comfortably between the back of the couch and his body watching The American President - it was his turn to pick - something she said hours earlier is still bothering Will._

_Running his hand through her hair, he presses his lips to the crown of her head resting on his chest and whispers to grab her attention “Hey Sass.”_

_“Yeah.” She whispers back, but doesn't look at him, her eyes locked on the screen. She loves this movie, it’s why he picked it._

_“Tomorrow, can you do me a favour?” Will asks quietly, hand moving from her hair to stroke along her back._

_Her fingers dance over his chest and she lifts her head up to look at him, chin moving to rest on the unmoving fist of her other hand. “You don’t want me to do you a favour tonight then?” She smirks, and presses her body impossibly closer to him._

_“God yes.” Will breathes out as images of what favours she might be willing to offer him flicker like a dirty film through his mind._

_He feels her body shake against him as she chuckles then lifts herself up slightly to press the softest of kisses to the corner of his mouth. “Keep it in your pants Whiskey, the President is about to buy flowers and I don’t want to miss it.”_

_“Sassy.” Will accuses, trying to regulate his breathing._

_Frankie chuckles again and presses a firmer kiss to his lips, then stays close when she asks him about the real favour._

_“Reorganize my kitchen.” Will requests softly, brushing a stray hair behind her ear when he does._

_Frankie leans back with a quizzical look on her face at his words. “You want me to clean your kitchen?”_

_“No, I want you to reorganize it.” Will starts, then stumbles over his words when he tries to explain. “I want you to be comfortable here. I want you to know where everything is and not have to ask. I want you to be able to cook and bake and clean without having to worry that I don’t have what you need or something won’t be what you’re used to.”_

_Frankie raises an eyebrow at his words and bites her lip like she’s trying hard not to say something. Will pauses and can’t help but feel he’s digging himself a bigger hole with every word. So naturally he tries to fix it._

_“Not that I only want you to cook and clean when you’re here, or I think you should be one doing all those things. Cause I don’t, I can do them. I will do them. You don’t have to cook for me and you certainly don’t have to clean up for me. I just mean that when you want to, when you’re here and we’re having dinner, or lunch, or breakfast or a snack maybe it would be easier if you knew…” Will stops talking when Frankie places a finger over his lips._

_“You want me to move things around in your kitchen so they're where I want them.” Frankie clarifies, with a soft look on her face and a mist in her eyes that Will hopes means she’s happy._

_“I want you to feel at home here Sassy, I want you to be comfortable and have things the way you like them. I want you to be happy here.” Will shyly utters._

_Looking at him in a way that makes his stomach swoop in the most delightful of ways, Frankie smiles softly and lifts one hand to his cheek. “If you’re here I’m happy Whiskey. It doesn’t matter to me that your kitchen is an organizational disaster. All that matters is that you’re standing in it with me.”_

_Will’s heart skips a beat, and his eyes feel wet like they do every time she says something that sounds more like him than her. His snarky, scowling, smartass Sass is a sap when they’re alone, and he couldn’t possibly love her more._

_“I love you Sass. All the way to Pluto and back.”_

_Frankie smiles at him shyly, with a small shake of her head. “Isn’t it usually the moon, Whiskey?”_

_“The moon’s for suckers pretty girl, I love you so much more than that.”_

_Frankie laughs and leans up to kiss him again, fully this time and with more love that just words could possibly express. Will wonders and not for the first time how he got so lucky._

_“I love you Whiskey.” She whispers when she pulls back, giving him a gentle smile before resting her head on his chest and watching the movie once more. “Now leave me alone and let me watch the movie.”_

_“So sassy, Francesca Katherine.” Will mutters, hand returning to her back, when she softly huffs out a rejection of his latest guess, stroking it slowly as they watch the two unlikely leads fall in love._

_Will wakes up the next morning to an empty bed and the muffled sounds of a pissed off Frankie coming from somewhere far away. Leaving the bedroom, he wanders cautiously down the hall then stops, a smile breaking out on his face._

_His kitchen is in complete disarray. Every cabinet open, every drawer ajar, and every piece of kitchen toolage he owns spread out for all the world to see._

_She’s making his kitchen hers._

_One step closer to making the whole place hers he thinks, turning and leaving her to it. He needs to go get dressed and ready, the locksmith on the corner opens in an hour and he has a key that needs to be copied._

  
  


**********

Will is startled from his memory when Frankie puts a plate down in front of him and takes a seat beside him with a plate of her own. 

“You made me eggs.” Will says in wonder, looking down at the pile of perfectly cooked yellow on his plate, next to a slice of toast caked in his favourite raspberry jam. 

“They’ll be easy on your stomach.” Frankie says softly, but doesn’t look at him when she does.

Looking over he sees the same pile of eggs on her plate, smaller sure, but still a pile of eggs and not a drop of ketchup in sight. 

“You hate eggs.” 

Frankie just shrugs and picks up her fork.

“Frankie why…”

“Just eat Will.” Frankie cuts him off with a sigh and shovels a forkful of eggs in her mouth and tries not to grimace at the taste and texture he knows she can’t stand. 

Will falls silent and lifts his fork to his mouth, chewing slowly as he tries to figure out which one of Frankie's self imposed sins she’s punishing herself for now and if Standish’s words had anything to do with it.

Frankie nibbles on her toast and refuses to make eye contact with Will, but she breaks the silence before she takes another bite of egg. 

“I thought it would help me forget.” She says softly. 

Putting down his fork, Will turns towards her, places his hand on her knee and is elated when she doesn’t immediately shove him away. 

“Forget what Frankie?” He questions softly. 

“You. How you made me feel. What you made me think I deserved.” Frankie respond softly, staring at something beyond him. When he follows her gaze he’s confronted with the box of condoms. 

Will’s throat bobs as he tries to keep the eggs in his belly. He doesn’t want to know. He doesn’t want her to tell him why she has them. She’s here now, she’s with him. Nothing else matters. 

“Frankie you don’t need to explain. I don’t care why you needed them or how often you needed them. You’re here now, that’s what matters.”

Frankie ignores him and continues to speak softly, keeping a steady and pain filled gaze on the box as if it’s the cause of everything that ever hurt either of them.

“I thought if I let someone else touch me. If I let someone else inside me. If I let someone else use me, I’d forget. I’d forget the way your hands felt, the way you kissed me, the way you made me feel cherished and safe. I’d forget how to feel loved.” Frankie’s voice trips as she tries to explain without releasing the flood of emotion he can see building in her eyes. 

Dropping her eyes from the box to his hand on her knee she covers it with her own and takes a ragged breath, “I wanted someone to hurt me. I wanted to feel pain, and shame and forget everything good that you made me feel. I didn’t deserve it anymore. And if someone could just make me forget that I ever did, I’d be ok again. I’d be numb enough not to feel anything anymore. That’s all I wanted. Not to feel anymore.”

Will’s quiet and statue still while she talks. He can’t find words to describe what he’s feeling. It’s not anger or pity or sadness but something in between he can’t put his finger on. He doesn’t have time to figure it out before her next words leave him with a new ache in his chest. 

“I’d find random men and let them get close. I let them put their hands on me, let them grab at me and tear at my clothes. I let them paw at me and grop me and leave marks on my body. But every time they did, every time hands were on me all I could think about was you.” 

Looking at him for the first time since she sat down, Frankie offers him a tiny smile that does nothing to mask the shame in her eyes. 

“All I could think about is how you would never touch me like that. That you would never bruise me on purpose, that you would never hit me when I wanted to stop. That you would never touch me in anger.”

Tears are welling his eyes and hers too, but both are refusing to let them fall. Both trying to hold on to what little control they have left. 

“I couldn’t do it, Will.” Frankie continues in a whisper, eyes full of shame and disgust. “I tried, I wanted to forget so bad and after a while I didn’t care if they hurt me like those men in Israel tried to do when I told them I changed my mind.”

Will feels his heart shudder at her words and the truth that’s written across her face when she says them. She wanted to be hurt, she wanted someone to hurt her. She wanted someone to hurt her because that’s what she thought she deserved. Will can’t hold his tears back anymore at the idea of her being in that much pain. 

Barely loud enough to hear over the pounding of his heart, Frankie presses forward shaking her head slightly as she too gives up her fight against the tears, “I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t let some random man in a bar take away those memories. I couldn’t let someone else kiss me and take away the taste of your sweetness. I couldn’t let someone else inside me and make me forget the rightness of you. I couldn’t do it, Will. I couldn’t let Ollerman take that away too.”

Choking on a sob Frankie squeezes his hand so tight her knuckles have gone white, eyes pleading for mercy, forgiveness and comfort, but refusing to ask for it out loud. “I never let them kiss me. I never opened the box. I swear I never let it happen Will, I never let it get that far. I couldn’t. They weren’t you.” 

Silence fills the apartment and Frankie’s most recent confession hangs over Will’s head as he replays her words over in his head. He told himself he didn’t care why she had the box, it didn’t matter what she needed it for. Nothing mattered other than that she’s here now. But that’s not true. 

It matters that she was hurting so bad she was going to let someone hurt her just so she could forget what it felt like to be happy. That she was made to feel so guilty that she thought the only thing she was worthy of was pain. It matters that she was going to let herself be used so she could forget ever being loved. 

It matters that she never did. 

The fact that she never went through with it tells him that maybe somewhere deep down she knows she’s worthy of gentleness and kindness and love. And he plans to make sure she feels it everyday for the rest of their lives. 

She’s got her head bent again, hair hiding her face from him, eyes on the floor when Will pulls his hand from hers, reaches out and runs his fingers along the almost faded line on her arm. 

“You were hurt when you came to the hospital. I heard Maggie talking about a bandage on your arm.” He says softly.

Frankie nods, but doesn’t respond. 

“How did you get hurt?” 

Frankie takes a deep shuddering breath, lifts her tormented eyes to Will and whispers, “I changed my mind. I couldn’t do it and he didn’t like that.” 

With a sigh Will tips forward to rest his forehead against hers and moves a hand to her face to hold her in place, thumb brushing delicately over her cheek. 

“I’m sorry you felt like you had to forget what it feels like to be loved. You are loved Francesca, so much. I’m going to spend every minute of every day for the rest of my life making sure you feel that. Make sure you know how treasured you are.”

With a small puff of air that sounds like a cross between a sob and a snort Frankie pulls back and studies him closely, searching his eyes and reading his face, before bringing her hand up to mirror his, resting it on his cheek. 

“How can you still look at me like that. With everything I’ve told you. Knowing everything I’ve done. After all the ways I’ve hurt you.” She asks softly, fingers running back and forth over a small scar just above his eyebrow. 

“How am I looking at you?” Will asks, thumb skimming over her abused bottom lip. 

“Like you love me.” She whispers in awe. 

It’s the easiest answer the world and Will doesn't hesitate to give it. “Because I do. More than anything Francesca, more than anything in the world. I love you all the way to Pluto and back.”

Frankie closes her eyes, takes a deep shuddering breath and scoots just a little closer to him. “The moon Whiskey, it’s supposed to be the moon.”

“The moon’s for suckers. You deserve more.” Will responds, pressing and holding his lips to her temple. 

“Sappy.” Frankie teases softly with a barely there smile. 

“You love it.” Will counters.

“I love you. So much Whiskey, so much.” Frankie says, smile vanishing from her face and seriousness filling her eyes when she opens them to gaze at him again. 

Feeling like he’s won the lottery at her words Will smiles and presses another kiss to Frankie’s forehead, then leans closer and presses the lightest of kisses to her lips before pulling away. 

Turning back to their cooling meal, Will leans over and picks up Frankie’s barely touched food, and dumps the remainder of her eggs onto his plate. 

With a raised eyebrow she watches him in amusement as he returns her plate to it’s spot, before placing his uneaten toast on top. 

“I need the extra protein to heal, I hope you don’t mind trading.”

Frankie just smiles, a real smile this time and mutters something through a bite of his toast that sounds suspiciously like “dork”, but he can’t be sure and Will feels a little lighter than he has since she first appeared before him hours ago.

They still have to talk about what Standish said, her deal with Ollerman and so much more, but for now, for just a moment they’re both content just to sit in each other's company, eat quietly and ignore the world outside their door. 


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was not the plan...clearly I can't stay on script any better than Frankie...
> 
> I have no explanation for what's about to happen....

Will doesn't push her talk while they clean up after their dinner. He doesn't ask questions or demand answers or even mention her absence. Instead he smiles at her and talks to her about a new restaurant he found that apparently has the best egg rolls ever, a movie on Netflix he saw a preview for that he just knows she’ll love, the book he’s reading about a soldier lost in the Sahara and how he can’t wait to get his cast off in two weeks because his arm itches so bad. 

He’s doing what he’s always done when he’s patching her up and taking care of her; he’s talking. He’s talking because he knows his voice soothes her, makes her feel safe and distracts her from the pain. 

She just can’t figure out why he wants to. 

Why he wants to make her feel better and put her back together again. Why he’s not angry and resentful. Why he still loves her. She can’t figure it out. 

She’s been trying since he kissed her and stole her eggs and the only reason she can come up with is; he’s Will. Will is one of the best things about this world and for some reason she’s sure she won’t ever be able to explain, he’s chosen her to share his goodness with. 

Maybe she’ll never understand it, maybe she’s not supposed to. Maybe she just needs to accept it as truth and try to move forward. Maybe it’s safe to let him love her again. To love her the way she loves him, without condition or fear. Maybe it’s safe to stay. 

Will interrupts her musing when he takes hold of her hand and leads her to the couch when they’re done in the kitchen, pulling her against him once he’s settled and asking her what movie she wants to watch. 

“We need to talk, Will.” She reminds him, moving so she’s not pressed up against him. The urge to just bury herself in his arms and never move is too tempting when he’s so close. 

There’s so much more that needs to be said and heard. Secrets to be shared and feelings to be recognized, hurt she caused that just can’t be swept under the rug like it never happened.

“I know.” Will concedes, with a small frown and tired eyes. “I know we do and we will, I promise. But can we just pause for a while. Just for a bit and pretend that everything is ok. Watch a movie and hold each other. Please Francesca, I just want to hold you and ignore the world. Just for a little while.”

_Just like after Prague._ It’s the first thought that pops into Frankie’s head. His words, similar, the look on his face identical to when he asked if he could hug her that night after they left Standish in the hospital, before they even started dating. 

Will’s always been good about asking for what he needs, much better than her. And she’s never been good at refusing him when he does, it seems four months apart hasn’t changed that. 

Frankie softens, she always does when he looks at her like that and uses that lowered and raspy voice. He knows that, it’s why he’s using it now. 

Swallowing her need to continue to apologize and beg forgiveness, she concedes softly. “Something fluffy. No guns, no killing, no bad guys, no tears. Just fluff.” 

Relief fills his eyes and a smile spreads across his face at her words. “Fluff it is.”

Frankie doesn’t pay much attention to the film, and from the amount of times she sees Will watching her out of the corner of her eye he isn’t either. Both lost in thoughts that not even the antics of Sandra Bullock and Hugh Grant can sway them from. 

He tucked her tight against him again soon after the movie started and pulled the afghan draped over the back of the couch across them, cocooning them together like he did countless times before she left. 

Will presses kisses to her head and temple as they watch the friendly bantering of the characters and whispers that he loves her when they fight. She rubs her hand over his knee when he does and presses herself a little closer to him when the movie makes him chuckle. She loves the way his body feels under hers when he laughs. 

It’s dark outside when the movie is over. They’re more lying down than sitting up by that point, her head on his shoulder and his good arm wrapped around her waist stroking at her scar. Neither makes a move when the story comes to a close, watching the credits the whole way through and adding an extra seven minutes to the film just so they don’t have to admit it’s over. 

But eventually even the credits end and the screen goes black leaving them alone in the dark, the only light coming from the small lamp on the counter and the city lights that penetrate the windows. 

It’s still relatively early, not even school children would be sent to bed yet, but Will’s exhausted. He won’t admit it to her, but she can see it in his face and his right leg keeps moving, he’s flexing his toes and rubbing his ear, sure signs he’s fighting to stay awake and keep himself alert. 

Holding back a sigh of regret Frankie pushes herself up and away from Will. He resists her pull for a second but then seems to think better of it and loosens his arms, but doesn’t let her go completely. 

“I should go, Jai will be waiting for me.” Frankie murmurs softly, refusing to meet Will’s eyes. 

“Stay. Call him and tell him you’re staying.” Will implores, lifting his hand to her face and leaning forward to press his lips to her cheek. 

“I can’t.” Frankie whispers back on a shaky breath, latching onto his raised arm and holding it tight. 

“You can.” 

Pulling back slightly Frankie forces herself to look him in the eye, “We can’t just pretend the last few months didn’t happen Will. We can’t pretend what I did doesn’t matter. We can’t just pick up where we left off.”

“Why?” 

“You know why."

“We’ll go slow.” He negotiates, "Just like when we started. Slow like turtles in peanut butter.” 

“I don’t know of any turtles that would agree to sleepovers so soon.” Frankie pathetically tries to sass, but he doesn’t take the bait.

Instead he looks at her with desperation and anguish and begs softly, “Don’t leave me.” 

Lifting her hand to ghost across the stubble on his cheek she whispers her rebuttal, “I’m not Will. I’ll come back tomorrow and we can talk some more.”

Her promise does nothing to appease him or calm the worry in his eyes, “Please Frankie, just for tonight. Let me hold you tonight and wake up with you tomorrow. Then you can go back to Jai’s and we can take it as slow as you need it to be. Just let me wake up with you in my arms tomorrow.” 

Frankie runs her thumb over his bottom lip slowly, “As slow as _we_ need it to be, Will. You need to be sure too, it's not just about me. It needs to be about both of us. I won’t let this be one sided. I need you to be safe with me. I need you to feel as safe with me as I need to feel with you. This can’t be just about me, not if we want to survive this.”

Determination fills his eyes, and confidence reigns clear in his tone. “We’re going to survive this pretty girl, you and me. We’re going to survive this and be better for it. It might take a while, but we will. Slow and steady Francesca, that’s how we’ll win.”

Frankie closes her eyes against his kind and love filled gaze. She wants to believe him so bad. She wants his faith and confidence. She wants his love and patience. She wants all of him. She doesn’t want to be without him anymore. And if she’s brave enough to say yes she doesn’t have to be. 

_Be brave Francesca, be brave for him. For you. For your future._

Opening her eyes she sighs softly, “I’m not having sex with you.”

“Francesca Jean, turtles do not have sex on the first date!” Will gasps in mock horror, yearning and hope shining clear in his moss coloured eyes. 

“Not my name and I mean it Will.” Frankie states firmly for the record. “You’re injured and hurting, no matter how badly you’re trying to deny those facts and we have a lot to figure out before we decide if we can cross that bridge without regrets.” 

“No sex I got it.” Will agrees quickly with a nod. “But you’ll stay, you’ll stay with me?” 

Caving fully, because not doing so would be impossible at this point, Frankie nods slowly and agrees in a whisper. “I’ll stay. I’ll stay if that’s what you really want.”

“I don’t want you to ever leave Francesca. I want you here with me forever.” Will insists, moving his hands to cradle her face and rest his forehead on hers. 

“One night.” That’s all she can promise right now She meant what she said about taking it slow. He needs time to process and decide what he really wants. What he’s willing to risk. She’s going to make sure he takes that time, even if he claims to already know. 

“One night at a time. One day at a time. Slow Frankie, as slow as you need. I promise.” 

“ _We_ need, Will.” Frankie reminds him.

“ _We_ need.” Will agrees, ducking his head and pressing his lips to hers.

She lets him kiss her for longer than she should. It’s sweet and soft and not in any way demanding and she’s reminded for about the 1000th time since she’s been back how much she missed him and how deeply she loves him.

Pulling back slowly she smiles as he chases her lips then huffs in annoyance when her hand on his chest stops him from catching her, pout settling on his lips and fingers twitching with need to touch her. 

Running her thumb over his lips to wipe the pout away she smiles at him softly. “Let me call Jai and tell him I’m breaking curfew.”

Heaving out an exaggerated sigh, Will nods, rises from the couch and drops a kiss on her head as he moves to clean up their glasses and untouched bowl of popcorn. 

Frankie watches him move into the kitchen, drop the items on the counter then gesture down the hall in his silent way of indicating he’s going to give her some privacy to make the call. 

Without waiting for a response he’s gone, and she knows it’s taking everything in him to let her out of his sight for even a second. 

He’s trying. She needs to do the same.

Jai picks up before the first ring is complete and as always skips the pleasantries and gets right to the point.

“Do I need to pack a bag?” 

Just hearing the offer and confirmation that she never has to be alone again calms Frankie. “No. Not yet.” 

“Did you tell him?” 

“Yes.” 

“Everything?” Jai challenges.

“Yes.” 

“Francesca.” She can hear the unspoken question in his tone. 

“I did Jai, I promise.” It's true she did, she told him more than she told Jai in fact. Though she’s pretty sure Jai has already figured out what she didn’t tell him. _Knows her better than she knows herself_ , she remembers as she runs a finger over the barely visible line on her arm. 

“And?” Jai implores. Frankie can hear traces of concern and tension in his voice. He’s ready to defend her to the end even if that means defending her from Will. 

“I’m going to stay here tonight.”

Jai is silent for a minute before asking her the same question he asked her outside the hospital so many months before, “You sure?”

Taking a deep breath and moving her eyes to the hallway Will disappeared down, she gives the same answer she did the first time he asked. “No, but I’m going to try.”

“Good girl.” Jai responds, and the approval has Frankie breathing just a little easier. 

Dipping her head, Frankie speaks softer than before just in case Will can hear her. “Jai, Standish was here and he…”

“I’m taking care of it.” Jai cuts her off. 

Closing her eyes Frankie can only imagine what Standish has said to Jai, “I don’t want…” 

“I know. I’m taking care of it Francesca.” Jai assures her. He won’t tell her what happened, she knows that, but she also knows it was probably bad. “You just focus on Captain Cuddles right now.” Jai continues, “I’ll handle the rest.”

“I don’t deserve you.” She whispers, knowing he’ll hear the hitch in her voice when she does. 

He ignores her words and changes the subject without missing a beat. “Do you need me to bring you anything?”

“No, you already gave him my backpack so I have what I need.”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.” He denies without a trace of the shame and guilt, she knows he must have felt when he handed the bag to Will.

“Of course you don’t.” She says with a smile. She’s sure he’ll hear that too, and any lingering guilt will disappear. 

“I love you Jai.” She says after a moment of quiet. 

“I’m moderately fond of you too Francesca.” He replies, pulling a snort of amusement from Frankie. 

“I’ll see you tomorrow.” Frankie murmurs quietly. She’s going back to Jai’s tomorrow. One night that’s all she promised. 

Jai sighs softly, and the tension she’s heard in his voice since she first got back is a little less noticeable. “Sleep well Francesca, you’re home.” 

Home. It almost sounds like hope. 

****************

Will can hear Frankie on the phone with Jai in the other room, though her voice is too low for him to make out the words. He doesn’t need to hear them to know what’s being said though. Jai’s offering her comfort and building her confidence and for that Will is forever grateful. 

He changes quickly, removing his jeans and hoodie and replacing them with pajama pants and a plain white undershirt. Before she left he would normally sleep in just his boxers, or nothing at all, but he doesn’t want to make Frankie uncomfortable in any way so he opts for more clothing tonight. 

He’s standing by the sink having just finished brushing his teeth when Frankie appears in the bedroom doorway, backpack in one hand and his pills in the other.

He watches as she lifts her chin, steadies her eyes and walks swiftly through the bedroom and directly into the washroom where he stands next to the sink. 

“You ok?” Will asks. She’s got a look on her face Will can’t place, her eyes are cautious and she’s abusing her bottom lip again.

“Will there’s a…” She starts then stops abruptly, eyebrows pulling together and backpack dropping from her hand and landing on his foot. 

“Frankie what…” But he stops talking when her hand suddenly lifts to his chest and presses against a small lump under his shirt, connected to the chain around his neck previously hidden by the bulk of his sweater. 

Her eyes flicker to his in question, before moving back to his chest. He holds his breath as she moves her hand to the chain around his neck and pulls at it softly until it springs free from its hiding spot and exposes the bullet it holds. 

She’s holding it in her hand just staring at it and he can’t keep silent any longer. “I got it fixed in Washington. I was going to give it back to you the night I got home, but…”

He doesn’t finish his sentence. He doesn’t need to, they both know why he never got the chance. 

She’s still staring and he can see mist filling her eyes before she closes them and tightens her hand into a fist around the metal. He doesn’t want to see her cry again. He’s seen too many tears today. They both have. 

Reaching out he wraps his hand around the back of her head and pulls her close to him until her face settles into the crease of his neck he knows she loves and he feels her breathe deeply against him. 

They stand there in the harsh light of the small room, him whispering in her ear that he only got it back from the hospital when he was released and that he’s worn it every day since she’s been gone. She mews quietly into his neck when he tells her he was keeping it safe for her, her hand continuing to hold tightly to the damaged piece of scrap around his neck. 

Eventually she pulls back and tries to hide her shaking hands from him. She’s still staring and biting at her lip to keep it from trembling, but she’s trying to be brave when she asks for it back with a shaky voice that cracks half way through her request. 

He doesn’t hesitate. Just lifts his arms, removes the loop from his neck, settles it around hers and watches as the bullet comes to rest between her breasts right above her heart. 

It’s home and so is she. 

“You need to take your pills.” Frankie instructs softly a moment later, pulling Will’s eyes from her chest to the bottle she’s holding before him. 

“Just one.”

“Two.” She counters already shaking them into the palm of her hand. “I’m not leaving Will, it’s ok to sleep deeply tonight. I’ll be beside you when you wake up.”

“Promise.”

“Promise.”

Will looks for and only sees truth in her eyes so he nods in agreement, takes the pills from her hand and swallows them with a mouthful of water from the tap.

“I’ll let you get changed.” He murmurs, kissing her forehead and moving from the room, pulling the door closed behind him. 

He hates how awkward it sounds and how strange it feels to have to leave the room while she undresses. He's always loved watching her get ready for bed at night or ready in the morning. And she loved when he watched her, always calling him a creep through a smile he did. But he promised her slow and slow does not include things that would have been normal and comfortable five month ago. 

Crossing into the bedroom Will sits at the foot of the bed and waits for her. He doesn’t move to get in the bed, he doesn’t know how she wants to do this. How she wants to handle them sharing a bed after so long alone. 

Would it be like when they shared a bed on missions early on and she insisted on a wall of pillows, or when he was wooing her and one of them would sleep on top of the covers. Or maybe like when they first started dating and they would try to keep it as PG as possible while still pressed up against one another. Or would she be willing to let him hold her the way he did every night after Spain. 

Will didn’t think much of it when they napped earlier in the day, he was too distracted with wonder at her being here at all to think about it. But now that he is, he doesn't know what to do. She needs to take the lead he decides, she’ll make the choices tonight. He’ll let her make the choices every night for the rest of their lives if that’s what she wants. 

A soft clearing of her throat startles Will from his thoughts and has him lifting his eyes to find her leaning against the door jam shyly watching him.

She’s wearing a pair of boxers he’s pretty sure are his, beneath an old Notre Dame football t-shirt he knows for sure he once claimed ownership of. Her hair is down, slightly damp at the edges and curling at the ends where it got wet when she washed her face and her perpetually cold toes are covered with thick wool socks he already knows she’ll pull off half way through the night, opting to use his body for heat instead. 

“Come here beautiful.” He calls to her softly, lifting his hand to latch onto hers when she gets close enough, pulling her to sit beside him on the bed and resting his forehead against her temple.

Will feels tension in her body and slowly rubs his hand up and down her back hoping to ease it. He doesn’t want her to be uncomfortable. Maybe he should offer to sleep on the couch. Maybe this is asking too much of her too soon. He doesn’t want to scare her away. He won’t survive her leaving again. 

“Frankie”

“Will”

They both start at the same time then stop, each looking embarrassed at the confusion. 

“You first.” Frankie softly offers, giving him a half smile of encouragement. 

“Do you want me to sleep on the couch?” He murmurs, but Frankie is already shaking her head and holding his hand tighter before the question is fully asked. 

“No. I’m staying to sleep beside you Whiskey, not to wake up alone in your bed.”

“Our bed.” Will corrects, without thinking, but offers no apology. It was their bed once and it will be again, he’s sure of it. 

Frankie doesn’t say anything about his correction, but does offer enough of a smile that Will feels his heart do a somersault in his chest, before her face turns tense again.

“What’s the matter?” Will probes softly.

He watches as she opens her mouth to say something, but then thinks better of it and stops. “It’s nothing.”

“Sass…”

“Don’t.” Frankie starts, then shakes her head before starting again, but not looking at him when she does. “You have a picture on the dresser. It wasn’t there before.”

Eyes moving to find the framed photo she’s talking about he stands to grab it and brings it back to the bed taking his place beside her once more. 

“Susan sent it to me while I was in Washington. It was the last picture I had of you.” He says softly, his fingers running gently over the black and white image of her face. 

Will hears Frankie take a ragged breath and turns towards her. She’s got her eyes closed and face turned away and Will doesn’t immediately understand why. He’s about to ask when the light from the bedside lamp catches on the frame in his hand and has him looking back at the photo.

Memories of that night flood through him, the fear of her missing, the horror of finding her tied up with men on top of her tearing at her clothes and patching her up on the plane while she shook and clung to him. He’s always seen their love for each other in that picture. Even through the trauma there was love. 

But there’s more to that picture that he knows now, it holds a bigger story, full of secrets and lies and heartbreaking loss. 

Standing, Will opens the top drawer of his dresser and quickly hides the picture away, hoping that it being out of sight will ease her pain stemming from the memories of that night, if only a little. 

“I’m sorry. I didn’t know.” He whispers, standing in front her and twisting a lock of her hair around his finger. 

Frankie’s head bobs softly and she looks up at him with tired eyes. “Maybe tomorrow we can take a new picture.” She offers softly, reaching for his cast and toying with the fingers poking out of the bottom. 

“Yeah?” Will questions, hope filling his chest. 

“Yeah.” Frankie confirms softly, leaning forward to press her head to his stomach and wrapping her arms around his middle. 

Smoothing his hand over her hair, Will leans down to kiss the top of her head gently, “I’m going to hold you to that, Sass.”

Frankie pulls back and is opening her mouth to reject the name again, but Will beats her to it. 

“And no,” Will begins, hand moving to cup her cheek to keep her eyes from dropping away from him, “I won’t stop calling you that, because that’s who you are. You’re my Sass. You’re my smartass, snarky, spunky, Sassafras. You’re my Sassy and I won’t let Ollerman take that from me. From us. He’s taken too much already. I won’t let him take that too.” 

Sadness fills her eyes as she looks at him with regret. “I’m not her anymore Will. I don’t know how to be. I don’t know how to be strong or courageous or fearless, not anymore.”

“You do. Just being here proves that, proves that you’re stronger than the fear."

"I don't feel that way, I don't remember how to feel that way."

"I’ll remind you. Everyday I’ll remind you. Jai will remind you. And Susan and Ray and Standish too. And if you need more than that we’ll figure it out together. You’ll get there.”

“And if I can’t? If I can’t be the brave and confident woman you remember. If this is who I am now.” Frankie murmurs, doubt clear in her features. 

“Then I’m the luckiest man in the world, because I get to fall in love with you twice.” Will whispers, stroking his fingers along her cheek.

Frankie looks at him like she doesn’t believe he’s real, then pushes him back with hands at his hips so she can rise to stand before him. Lifting her arms to loop around his neck she pulls herself close, presses her nose to his cheek and breathes out words that make his whole body shiver. 

“Standish was right, I don’t deserve you. I love you Whiskey.” 

Wrapping his arms around her, his response is swift. “I love you too, Sass.” They can argue about Standish and how wrong he was later, Will doesn’t want to fight anymore tonight. 

“Say it again.” She demands softly, pressing herself closer and pulling him tighter. 

Will’s compliance is immediate. “Sass. My Sass. I love you.”

He tries but can’t hold back a large yawn a few seconds later, breaking the silence and causing Frankie to huff out a small laugh.

“Time for bed Whiskey.” She announces and with one last squeeze and kiss to the corner of his mouth, she untangles herself from his arms and moves to pull the covers back from his side of the bed. 

After helping him get comfortable the same way she did that afternoon, she flicks off the lights and crawls into bed beside him. He’s relieved when she doesn’t keep the distance between them when she slips under the covers this time, instead tucking herself into his side, one arm around his waist and nose pressed into his chest. 

His fingers dance across her back while hers softly tangle with that she can reach below his cast neither quite ready for sleep, but also too cautious to break the peace they’re found.

But there’s one last thing that’s been bugging Will and he wants to make things clear before he goes to sleep and if he doesn’t do it now he’s not sure he’ll be able to before the drugs work their magic. 

“Hey Sass.”

“Hmmmm”

“No more eggs ok.”

Frankie pulls up and away from Will, lifting her body so she’s hovering over him frowning slightly. 

Pushing the hair falling in her face behind her ear, he continues. “No more punishing yourself. Not for this, not for any of it. Not anymore, you’ve suffered enough.”

She doesn’t say anything for a minute just looks at him, eyes flickering over his face as if trying to figure out if he’s serious. She must trust that he is because she leans down and kisses him softly on the lips before settling beside him once again. 

“I’ll let you take that one up with Jai.” She murmurs into his chest and he can hear the smirk in her voice. 

“I’m not afraid of him you know.” Will sulks. He’s not, ok well maybe a little. 

Will can feel the vibration of her silent amusement rush through her body, and the press of her lips to his chest as she mumbles her response. 

“Ok Whiskey.”

Will presses a final kiss to her forehead and listens to her breathing even out before he closes his eyes and lets sleep take him. 

It’s the best nights sleep they’ve both had in months. 

  
  


*********************

“I don’t like this.”

“I know you don’t.”

“It seems unnecessary.”

“But it’s not.”

“I love you.”

“I love you too. But I’m still going back to Jai’s.”

Will huffs in annoyance and offers her a pout that would make a toddler jealous as they sit in the back of a cab the following night. 

They spent the whole day together, talking, napping, fighting, kissing, refusing to talk to each other and making up. In the hours since they woke up in a familiar tangle of arms and legs, they’ve covered a lot of ground. 

More feelings have been shared and more tears than either thought possible have been cried, and though they’re both still hurting and sadness sits like a stone in their hearts, they both feel lighter than they have in months. 

But Frankie still refuses to stay with him more than the one night she agreed too. 

“I just don’t understand why you can’t stay with me. It’s your home Frankie, our home, it’s where you belong.”

Frankie feels her will power dissolving when she looks into his pleading eyes, so she drops hers away. She was so sure this is what was best yesterday when he agreed with her plan to go slow, and again this morning when he kissed her softly when she woke up after sleeping for more than eight hours straight for the first time in what feels like forever. 

She even held steady in her belief when she packed her bag and carried it out of the apartment a little over an hour ago. But now that she’s just moments away from being separated from Will again, even for just a few hours after finally getting him back, she’s forgotten why she thought it was a good idea. 

The cab pulls to a stop and Frankie opens the door and climbs out before she can do something stupid like tell the driver to turn around and take her home again. They need time, she reminds herself. Time and space to be sure. 

Will taught her that, how to be sure about things before jumping in headfirst so you don’t get hurt. 

Stupid Will. 

God she loves him so much. 

He’s at her side, pulling her bag off her shoulder and throwing it over his before the cab pulls away. 

“I can carry my own bag Will.”

He smiles softly at her and takes her hand in his. “Wooing.” 

“You’re hurt.”

“You’re pretty.”

Cue dramatic eye roll and exasperated sigh, “Will.”

“If you’re going to make me let you go, you can at least let me be a gentleman about it.” Will mutters gently and presses a kiss to her temple. 

With the sigh of a heavy heart, Frankie turns her body into Will and wraps her arms around his middle. She knows he’s only being difficult for show. He’s not really mad at her for wanting to go back to Jai’s. Disappointed maybe, but not mad. They both know why she has too, they might not like it, but it’s for the best. At least for a little while. 

Will presses another kiss to her temple and laces his fingers through hers, “Come on pretty girl, I don’t want to know what happens if I get you home past curfew.”

It takes them 20 minutes to reach Jai’s door. “Faster than yesterday.” Will boasts through a laboured breath, much to Frankie’s displeasure as she takes in his pale face and the sweat dampening his hair. 

“You should have let me carry my bag.” She grumbles at him when they reach the top and she pulls the snow globe keychain from her pocket. 

Will just smiles. “Full service operation, beautiful.”

Snorting as she opens the door, Frankie almost walks right into Jai.

Ignoring Frankie, the impeccably dressed spy narrows his eyes at Will. “You said you’d have her home by 10 William, it’s almost half past.”

If possible Will turns a little paler. He recovers quickly though and shoots Jai what she thinks is he most innocent and charming smile. 

Right before he lies through his teeth. 

“Sorry Jai, it took me a little longer than I thought to climb the stairs and with the rain it took a while to get a cab.”

“It’s not raining.” Jai points out.

“It’s spitting. Might be more of mist now that I think about it. It’s definitely cloudy.” Will babbles, much to Frankie’s amusement. Jai’s as well, though no one other than her would be able to tell. 

“Francesca?”

“He had his hand up my shirt and tongue in my mouth so I didn’t notice when the movie ended.”

A look of absolute betrayal crosses Will’s face as he gapes at her in shock before turning to Jai and sputtering out a defense so pathetically untruthful and animated that she can see Jai clenching his jaw in an attempt not to laugh. 

“I did not.” _Yes he did._ “I kept my hands to myself all night.” _He most certainly did not._ “I would never…” _He definitely would, and has more times than she can count._

Will can’t seem to find his words as he swivels back and forth between the two of them, eyes begging her for help and Jai for mercy. 

Frankie takes pity on him and laughs softly, Jai cracking a smile not long after. 

Taking in their delighted expressions, Will straightens his shoulders and huffs out a quiet, “mean,” making them both smile wider. 

Squeezing Will’s hand gently and removing her bag from his grasp, Frankie excuses herself with the promise to return in a moment and makes her way down the hall to drop off her things. 

She’s not out of earshot before she hears Will offering up another apology for bringing her back later than planned. Such a boy scout, she thinks with a smile.

Walking back into the room a few minutes later she finds them standing in the same spot she left them and she rolls her eyes at what she overhears.

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen you in anything other than formal wear. Do you sleep in a suit?” 

Jai smiles his most wicked smile and Frankie knows without a doubt what he’s about to say, “Ask your girlfriend.” 

She tries but can’t hold in the small giggle that escapes her lips at Will’s look of consternation, before she jumps to his defence. 

“Be nice Jai. I like him.”

Collecting himself, Will throws her a winning smile and Frankie feels her heart do a little flip in her chest. 

Jai decides he’s had enough and abruptly ends the night. “I’ll walk you out Will. I can’t have you falling down the stairs and waking the neighbours at this ungodly hour and if Francesca does it I’ll be up until dawn waiting for her to return.”

Will and Frankie both smile softly, but don’t argue the truth in Jai’s assumption.

“Give us a minute Jai?”

Jai nods at Frankie’s request and lets himself out into the hall to wait pulling the door shut behind him. 

Moving towards Will, Frankie pulls her marginally lighter backpack off her shoulder and hands it back to him. “So you know I won’t leave.” She says softly. She knows he’s still worried she’ll disappear and she hopes having her bag will ease his anxiety a little. 

She can tell that he understands and knows what it means by the way the small downward pull of his lips he’s had since they left his place eases slightly at the corners. 

She can also tell he’s trying hard not to cry when he tries to make light of it. “You made me carry your bag up six flights of stairs, just to take it back again.”

“Just testing the limits of that full service guarantee.” She murmurs back, tears threatening to form in her eyes as well. 

“Lifetime guarantee, gorgeous. No limits or exclusions.”

“Lucky me.”

Will slowly brings his hand to her cheek and steps into her space. “I’m the lucky one Sass.”

Pressing her head to his chest she wraps her arms around him and holds him close, breathing him in and marvelling how different her life was just 38 hours ago, and how she never wants to go back. 

Eventually he tilts her head back and presses his lips to hers, soft and full of promise. 

“I love you Sass. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“In the morning.” She confirms. It can’t come soon enough. 

Another kiss follows along with more declarations of love and a promise of perfectly toasted bagels in the morning and then he’s gone. Walking through the door and out of sight. She misses him already and tries to remember why she’s letting him leave. But moving her hand to her stomach reminds her of why things need to be the way they are. If only for a little while. 

****************

And so it goes for the next two weeks. She comes to his apartment each morning - once before he was even fully awake - and they spend the day together. They banter, share stories, fight and make up, then he delivers her back to Jai long after the sun has gone to sleep, with a kiss and the promise of a new day together when the sun rises again. 

They promised to go slow and for the most part they have. They talk more than they ever have, they listen better than they ever did, and even with the pain of her leaving, the knowledge of what was done to them and what they lost hanging over them like a cloud, they both feel stronger in their relationship than they ever did before. 

Things could not be better in Will’s opinion. Or that’s what he thought, until he’s startled awake when Frankie brushes the hair off his forehead and calls his name softly, hours after he returned her to Jai’s on the thirteen day of their new normal.

Sitting on the coffee table and smiling at him in the darkness of the apartment she quietly whispers through the silence, “Why are you on the couch?”

Sleepiness is muddling his brain and he’s only half convinced he’s not dreaming when he leans into her hand and mumbles his reply. “I don’t sleep in our bed without you.”

A trace of guilt flickers in her eyes before she pushes it away and runs her thumb across his cheek. “Jai kicked me out.”

Will is sure he’s dreaming now. There’s no way Jai kicked her out, not in a million years would Jai ever make her leave. 

A small smile plays across her lips now, “He said I was too wiggly and hogging the covers.”

Even through the diminishing blurriness of sleep, Will’s pretty sure he knows what her being here in the middle of the night means, but he’s trying not to let his excitement show. “You do have a habit of stealing the blankets.”

She has the nerve to look offended at the well known truth. Will couldn’t contain the warmth spreading throughout his body if he tried. 

“He claimed I was keeping him awake by talking in my sleep.”

“So it wasn’t the weird snorting snore thing you do then?” Will teases.

“That is a vicious rumour Will Chase and I would prefer you not repeat it.” Frankie shoots back with the sass she’s been working hard at finding again.

Will just grins at her and mimes locking his lips, and throwing away the key. 

“Anyway,” Frankie continues with an exaggerated aura of displeasure, “Jai was being grumpy and cranky and most unreasonable when I told him so.”

“I can’t imagine why.” 

“He told me I had to find a new place to sleep.” 

“Did he now.” Will cocks an eyebrow at her. 

Frankie slowly nods, a shy look skirting across her face. “So I was thinking, maybe I could sleep here. You know, just for tonight.” 

“Just tonight?”

“Maybe a few nights.” Frankie suggests with a small shrug. 

“A few nights.”

“Maybe longer.” She whispers softly. 

“Francesca.” Will sits up and reaches for her face. He’s not teasing anymore. He needs to hear the words. He needs to hear her confirmation of what he wants so badly for her to be saying. 

She doesn’t make him wait for it. “Maybe forever.” She whispers without a trace of hesitation in her voice, eyes steady and clear.

She’s home for good. 

Will feels like his world has finally snapped back into place after months of being bent and broken. 

“I think I could work with that” He murmurs, leaning forward and pressing his forehead to hers.

“Yeah?”

“Yeah.”

Pulling back, Will dips his head, presses a short and firm kiss to her lips, then quickly pulls her down so she’s laying on top of him and tucks the blankets tight around them both. 

Frankie laughs quietly. “We should go to bed Will.” She mutters, voice full of sleep, even as she’s adjusting her body to settle more comfortably, squeezing herself into her usual spot between him and the back of the couch. 

“I like it right here.” He counters, hand moving into her hair and lips pressing against her temple. Wild horses couldn’t make him move from his spot, holding the love of his life in his arms, on their couch, in their home, right where they both should be. 

“Mmmm, I love you Whiskey.” She mumbles, half asleep and growing heavy against him as she relaxes. 

“To Pluto and back.” He whispers into the quiet of the apartment. 

Everything is ok again, everything is perfect. 

*******************

Will replays that night in his mind often, the tranquility, the sweetness, the absolutely perfection of that moment in time. 

He thinks of it again less than two weeks later when he’s staring down the barrel of the gun that Frankie is pointing at his head, eyes cold and finger twitching on the trigger. 

It was perfect. 

If only it had stayed that way.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am not going to lie. I did not see that ending coming, like at all. My fingers typed it without consulting my brain and well, here we are. 
> 
> Oy Vey, please excuse me while I go figure out what the hell just happened...sure I’ve got time...it’s not like I should be planning how to run a classroom and teach phonics while wearing a hazmat suit or anything…


	17. Chapter 17

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all so much for the lovely comments after last chapter, the ending certainly caused some chaos. While this chapter might not give you the answers you're looking for, it does cover a lot of little pieces of groundwork that will ultimately lead us to Frankie holding that gun. 
> 
> I hope you enjoy.
> 
> P.S. you should probably go read the the last chapter of Inferno again if you haven't already, cause daaaaamn.

“Sass you need to get up.”

“No.” Frankie grumbles and doesn’t open her eyes. 

Will runs a hand over her hair and tries again. “It’s almost nine.”

“That’s still the middle of the night, leave me alone.”

“We’re supposed to have breakfast with Jai before going to the hospital.”

Frankie tries to hide a smirk by rolling away from him. “He kicked me out, I’m mad at him.”

Will smiles. He’s still absolutely certain that Jai in no way kicked her out last night. She wants to be here with him. So much so that she got out of bed and made her way home in the middle of the night. Frankie doesn’t get out of bed for anything if she doesn't want to. 

Including breakfast, which is why Will is standing over her, trying to wrestle away the blanket she’s got tucked around herself, while she hides her face in the back of the couch to block out the morning light. 

Time to get tough Will concludes and with a firm tug he pulls the blanket off her and throws it over the back of the couch and out of her reach leaving her covered only in her plaid pajama pants and his stolen t-shirt. 

“Whiskey,” she whines, throwing an arm over her face and curling into herself. “My eyes are too sleepy to be awake this early.”

She really is a child in the mornings Will decides. A grumpy, stubborn and beautiful child. Damn he really missed her morning crankiness. 

Sitting on the edge of the cushion at her hip, he places one hand on the back of the couch and leans over her. 

“Come on Francesca. I’ll buy you an extra big coffee this morning. One of those fancy ones you love so much with that extra sugary caramel creme.”

She rolls onto her back and cracks an eye open at him in curious suspicion. “With whipped cream?”

“Caramel drizzle too if you get up right now.”

Pouting at him, she caves. “Fine, but only because of the caffeine.”

“Of course.”

He really is the better negotiator. 

She smiles sleepily at him and suddenly it's not possible to keep himself from kissing her right then and there. Leaning down and pressing his lips to hers he’s rewarded with her arms looping around his neck and pulling him closer. 

They’ve kept their promise about keeping things PG so far, and much like at the beginning of their relationship, both are becoming increasingly frustrated by that fact. A fact that is sure to change now that she’s moving back home. 

Will would love more than anything to change that fact right now and from the way she’s pulling him closer and slipping her hands under his shirt while making the most delicious sounds, he’s pretty sure she does too. But they don’t have time now, not the time he wants with her anyway, so he pulls away slowly and brushes the pout from her lips with his thumb. 

“You already showered.” Frankie notes quietly, hand running through his still damp hair.

“I’ve done lots of things already today pretty girl, not all of us like to sleep the day away.”

“Ugh, morning people are so annoying.” Frankie proclaims, with a look of disgust that contradicts the soft shine in her eyes. 

“Yeah, we’re the worst.” Will agrees, then kisses her hard on the lips and pulls back, bringing her with him so she’s sitting up and leaning against him.

He holds her tight enjoying the weight of her body against his - though it’s painfully clear from the ribs and bones he can feel that she’s still far too thin - and presses another kiss to her head. 

With a sigh and a yawn, Frankie pulls away and lifts herself off the couch with the grace that tells Will she was once a dancer. Stretching her arms above her head, her shirt rises right along with Will’s blood pressure when a strip of skin he hasn’t seen in months is suddenly right in front of him.

But that’s not all he sees just inches from his face.

Shooting his hands out towards her and grabbing her hips, he’s lifting up the bottom of her shirt in an attempt to get a better look at her skin before she can lower her arms. 

“Whiskey, what?”

He doesn’t respond. He can’t, he’s too busy staring at the scar he gave her when they first met and the small tattoo he’s never seen before that’s hugging it. 

For a second Will is confused. Frankie doesn’t have tattoos. She likes them on other people, sure, as long as they’re not vulgar or grotesque. And she loves his marine tattoo, even if she teases him about the eagle scouts banishing him and revoking his badges if they knew he had one. 

But Frankie has always been adamant she’d never get one. She doesn’t like needles and she said her mother would never forgive her. 

Tracing his fingers delicately over the tiny black inked letters that form a word no bigger than his thumb, Will feels tears flood his eyes before he leans forward and presses his lips to her beautifully damaged skin. 

Will feels Frankie tremble and her fingers run through his hair when she softly whispers his name.

He doesn’t want to let go of her, so he wraps both arms around her holding her close when he looks up at her in wonder. 

“You have my name on your body.” He marvels.

She nods slowly, eyes misty and a little nervous. 

“You told me you wanted to forget.”

She smiles regretfully, and runs her thumbs over his cheeks. “Not everything. I belong to you Will, nothing was ever going to change that.” 

Will lets a tear escape before he presses his face back into her stomach, kissing the small “Whiskey” on the curve of her hip over and over again. “I love you so much Francesca.”

Hugging the back of his head to hold him against her, she repeats his words then pulls him up at his shoulders until he’s standing and tangling his hands in her hair as he kisses her in earnest. 

Frankie mews softly into his mouth and holds him to her as she starts walking backwards. Navigating around furniture and corners without letting go of his lips. She leads him to the doorway of their bedroom before the need for air forces them apart. 

Groaning and trying in vain to keep himself from pushing her into the room and onto the bed, Will attempts to ignore Frankie’s lips biting and sucking at his neck. 

“Frankie, you need to get ready. We have to meet Jai in less than an hour.”

“Don’t wanna.” Frankie murmurs against his skin, hands slipping under his shirt, dancing across the skin of his stomach and playing with the zipper of his jeans. 

Will doesn’t want to either. He doesn’t want to leave the apartment at all, and he certainly doesn’t want to stop Frankie from having her way with him after five months of not having her at all. 

“We’ll be quick.” Frankie offers pulling at his belt and kissing the underside of his jaw in the way she knows he loves. 

Will is so tempted to give in, his body is certainly on board, humming and seizing in all the right places. But they don’t have time and he won’t rush it. 

He wants to take his time with her their first time together again. He wants to make sure she feels loved and worshiped and cherished after so many months of being abused. 

He wants it to be perfect for her. For them. So he pushes her away, takes hold of her roaming hands and presses his forehead to hers. 

“I want you Francesca, so bad. But not like this, not rushed with a deadline hanging over our heads. I want it to last, I want to take hours pressing my lips to every inch of your body and listening to every delicious sound you make. I want to hold you close and fall asleep with you in my arms before we wake up and do it all again. I want time, beautiful. I want an endless amount of time with you.”

“Damn it Whiskey.” Frankie starts, letting a shaky sigh escape her body. “Why are you so...why do you have to be so….you.”

Will chuckles and pulls her tightly to him kissing her temple firmly. “Sorry.” He’s not in the least bit sorry. 

Frankie grips the hem of his shirt tightly, “The second we get home Whiskey. I mean it. The second we walk through that door, we’re doing this.”

Will laughs. “That’s my Sass. Always the romantic.”

Frankie huffs but doesn’t argue, just pulls back and glares at him slightly. 

Grinning at her annoyance, Will spins her around by the shoulders, pats her ass softly and dismisses her into their room. “Get dressed gorgeous, we have a date with some pancakes and fancy coffee.” 

Frankie takes a step forward then throws him a wicked grin over her shoulder. 

“Just gotta shower first Whiskey.” She’s got her pants off before Will can blink and is pulling at the hem of her shirt before he can process what’s happening. 

He can hear her laughing when he stumbles out of the room, eyes closed, not that it does anything to prevent the image of her standing naked before him from flickering through his mind. 

“Mean.” He yells back at her.

“You love it!”

He really does. 

  
  


****************

“I hope you ordered me coffee.” Frankie grumbles as she slides into the booth across from Jai, stealing his mug and taking a sip as Will shoves her over so he can sit beside her, earning a glare for his efforts that only slightly lessens when his hand runs over her thigh under the table. 

Stealing his mug back, Jai snarks back at her though adoration and amusement shine clear in his eyes. “And what has you in this delightfully cantankerous mood this morning Francesca? Sun shining the wrong way, birds chirping too cheerfully, rainbows too colourful?”

Casting an accusatory look in Will’s direction Frankie sneers. “He woke me up then said he wouldn’t have sex with me because _you_ wanted pancakes.”

Jai crinkles his nose. “Gross.” 

“I know right.” Frankie says animatedly, then turns serious. “I’m moving back in with you.”

Jai tilts his head to the side in question. “Because you think I’ll have sex with you?”

This time it’s Frankie’s nose that crinkles. “Double gross.”

“You guys are certifiable. I hope you know that.” Will interjects and waves down the waitress. He’s got to get some caffeine into Frankie soon, he worries for the safety of the next person that even marginally annoys her if he doesn’t. Himself included. 

Frankie and Jai continue to banter and occasionally mock Will while they order and wait for their food to arrive. Frankie’s less tense now than she was when she first got home, relaxing more and more everyday. 

But when Jai’s around it’s almost like she can breathe a little easier and her smile is just a little bit brighter. Will’s sometimes jealous of that, that Jai can make her feel that much more secure. But as long as she’s smiling and her hand is holding his under the table he tries not to worry too much about it. 

When they’re done eating, Frankie excuses herself to use the washroom, pressing her syrup sweetened lips to Will’s before she walks away leaving the two men alone together. 

“She looks happy.” Jai says softly, looking at Will. “Since she’s been back she always looks just a little bit scared, always watching for danger lurking in the corners. But when you’re around she doesn’t. Not as much anyway. You made it safe for her to come home Will.”

Will feels his throat tighten at Jai’s words. He thought Jai was the one that was calming her. Turns out it was both of them together that Frankie was relying on. 

“You told me to get my shit together remember. Told me how.” Will croaks. He will not cry. Jai would not appreciate that. 

Jai smiles. “I’m glad you listened.”

Will smiles back. “Me too.”

Taking a sip of his coffee Jai lowers the mug before he casts a quick look over his shoulder in the direction Frankie disappeared to, smile gone from his face, eyes hard. 

“I think I have a lead.”

Will leans in and speaks softer. “You know where he is?”

Jai shakes his head. “Not exactly, but I’ve got a contact who’s been tracking some activity that would suggest he’s in Portugal, maybe Lisbon.”

“Does she know?”

“No. She doesn’t know I’ve been looking.”

They both know that’s a lie, of course she knows. She knew as soon as she told him what happened that he would start hunting and planning, even though she asked him not to. 

She knows they both want to hunt Ollerman down and kill him for what he did, that they want him to suffer and get vengeance for the harm he caused.

Will’s sure she knows that’s what they do every night when Jai walks Will back down the stairs of his building, they conspire and map out a general idea for a plan for when they find him. 

Neither will tell her outright what they’re doing, especially Will. She's still far too wary of Ollerman discovering she’s broken their deal, or how he might retaliate if he knows Will is back on the hunt. 

But mostly they don’t want her to know in case it doesn’t work out. Neither want her to hurt anymore. They don’t want to fail her, not again. 

She’s back before either man can say another word, slipping into the booth and stealing Will’s coffee this time, her own mug empty long ago.

“Whatcha boys been talking about.” She asks, with an edge in her voice that indicates she thinks she knows exactly what the topic of conversation was. 

Will’s searching his brain for a convenient half truth he can tell her so it’s not an outright lie, when Jai swoops in clearly having expected her question. 

“I was just sharing my latest quiche recipe so Will can make it the next time you’re being annoying, so probably by lunch.” He teases, with a smirk on his lips. 

Frankie sticks her tongue out at him in response. 

Jai narrows his eyes and turns to Will. “Remember to double the mushrooms and don’t use any cheese, just mucks it up.”

Will chuckles and agrees before changing his mind quickly and promising to never make it, when Frankie turns her glare on him. 

“Gross” Jai mutters into his coffee, then calls for the cheque, a second later when Frankie leans up and presses her lips to Will’s.

Ignoring him, Will forgets all about Ollerman, the plan, and pretty much everything other than Frankie and the way she feels pressed against him. 

Breakfast was nice and they have to be at the hospital to get his cast off in just a little while, something he’s been dreaming of for weeks, and he really wants to talk to Jai more about what he found, but right at this moment Will wishes that he’d listened to Frankie and they never left the apartment. 

*************

“Stop sulking.”

“I’m not sulking.”

“You are.”

Will huffs and tries to stay quiet, but in true Chase fashion it lasts no more than a few seconds. “It’s not fair, they told me two weeks. It’s been two weeks Frankie, I should be free of this stupid cast.” 

Frankie reaches out and grabs the hand not encased in a brand new cast and squeezes it gently as they walk on the busy city sidewalk not far from their building. “One more week Will. And you were free of the cast. For a whole hour, and it’s not even a real cast this time it’s a glove splint thing.”

Will doesn’t look at all comforted by her words. The x-ray showed that the bone is healed but because it was broken in two places and the residual swelling lingered, the doctor insisted on an additional week in a cast. Will charmed her down to a brace, but she refused to budge further than that. 

Frankie smiles at his disgruntled pout. “The doctor even said you can take it off when you shower.”

“I guess that’s better.” Will admits begrudgingly. 

“It’s too bad really when you think about it.”

Will eyes her with suspicion. “How’s that?”

Frankie sends him an innocently pained look, “It’s just, you’ve been complaining so much about how hard it is shower without getting the cast wet that I was planning on helping you out when we got home.” 

Sighing dramatically and toying with his fingers, Frankie lowers her voice and tries to sound regretful as she continues. “But alas you won’t need me to wash your hair anymore. Won’t need me to make sure you don’t miss any important places. You can do it all by yourself now…”

Will stops dead in the middle of the street causing a man behind him to bump into him, utter a curse and continue on his way. Narrowing his eyes at Frankie, Will sharply nods and grabs her arm dragging her back in the direction they just came from. 

“Will,” Frankie laughs, “Where are we going, home’s the other way.”

Looking at her with dark, dirty intentioned eyes, Will growls quietly at her. “We’re going back to the hospital so I can get a real cast again.”

Smothering a smile Frankie pulls him back to her and presses her lips to his, stroking his whisker roughened cheek with one hand and lacing her fingers as best she can though his braced ones. 

She feels him wrap his other arm around her as she mutters against his lips. “Let’s go home Whiskey, I’m sure we can think of some other reason you need help in the shower.”

“Water conservation.” He blurts out immediately, turning her towards the apartment again. “Gotta save the fish.”

“Whatever does it for you, Whiskey.” Frankie chuckles and hurries her steps just a little more, not mentioning the fact that since they’ve both already showered today they won’t be saving any water at all. 

She’s as anxious to finish what they started this morning as he is. Though she’d be lying to herself if she said she didn’t have any trepidation about what’s about to happen. How each of them will handle being together after so many months apart and so many secrets and sins out in the open. 

Pushing those thoughts aside Frankie holds tight to Will’s hand as he leads her through the door of their building and presses her back against the wall, lips firmly pressed together as they wait for the elevator to arrive.

His hand is slipping under her shirt to stroke at her scar and the tattoo he’s newly fascinated with when the elevator dings it’s arrival and Will pulls her inside.

He’s pushing her against the back wall and continuing his assault, his lips attached to her neck this time when a voice startles them into loosening their hold, but not letting go of each other. 

“Hi handsome.” Nicky purrs, entering the elevator after them and pressing the button for their floor, completely ignoring Frankie in the process.

“For fucks sake.” Frankie mutters under her breath, much to Will’s amusement. 

Ever the boy scout, Will of course chooses to be polite, “Hello Nicky, I hope you’re having a lovely day.”

Nicky casually traces her eyes over Will from head to toe, lingering longer around his belt buckle than Frankie is happy with. “I am now that I’m looking at you.” 

“Oh, well thank you.” Will responds with an awkward blush, leaving Frankie no choice but to roll her eyes at him.

Still actively ignoring Frankie, Nicky licks her lips and purses them at Will. “I haven’t seen you around much lately. I miss seeing you. Coming back from the gym, all sweaty from a run, all that moisture just clinging to your body.”

Frankie has to actively keep herself from throwing up, or punching the twit.

Brushing her hand over Will’s arm that’s still wrapped around Frankie, Nicky drops her voice and continues in what Frankie assumes the girl thinks is a sexy tone. “I especially miss seeing you all rumbled and sleepy looking in the mornings.”

Maybe shooting her would be a better choice. Either way Will’s hands tightening on her waist and the stillness of his body tells Frankie he’s had enough and is trying to stay calm. 

Time to rescue her man. 

Pulling at Will’s hips so they’re pressed more firmly against hers, Frankie turns her head to address the trollop, in a cool but kind voice. “I never got to thank you Nicky. For taking such great care of him while I was gone. And for stepping aside most gracefully now that I’m back.”

Will glances away from Nicky and back to Frankie with a look of confusion. “What?”

Looking at him in mock sympathy, Frankie lifts her hand to run over his cheek. “It’s okay Will, you don’t need to hide it. Nicky told me about the two of you sleeping together while I was gone.”

“I did not!” Nicky loudly defends, when Will’s eyes widen in disbelief and he starts shaking his head forcefully in denial and turns to glare at her. 

Frankie hides her smirk behind a look of confusion. “Yes you did. You told me the best way to get over someone was to get under someone new. You said that’s what you helped Will to do. Right after you told him that I cheated on him.” 

“You cheated on me?” Will turns back and looks at Frankie in question. He knows it’s not true, but still he’s curious. 

Frankie nods solemnly. “With Jai.”

Will sighs and nods in understanding, hand slipping under her shirt to rub at her hip. “Ah yes, well he is impossible to resist.”

Frankie smirks. “I’m going to tell him you said that.”

Winking quickly at her Will turns back to the blonde. “Nicky we never slept together.”

Crossing her arms and popping her hip Nicky glares daggers at Frankie, and pleads with Will. “She misunderstood. I never said any of that. She’s lying. She’s purposely trying to make me look bad.”

The elevator doors open and Frankie pushes past Nicky pulling Will by the hand behind her. “So odd, either way I’m back now so you don't have to worry about him anymore, I got it from here. Right baby?”

Will looks at her in amusement. He’s always liked when she gets jealous, not that she’s jealous now, of course. She knows Nicky is no threat, Will knows she knows that too, but it hasn’t stopped the smirk that’s growing on his face from appearing. As soon as they get into the apartment Frankie is going to wipe that smirk off his face so fast he won’t even be able to remember who Nicky is, let alone what she claims to have done to him. 

Nicky of course gets in a parting shot that leaves Frankie wishing she hadn’t turned in her gun all those months ago. “If you change your mind Will, want someone a little younger maybe. Not as bitchy for sure, I’m right here, and unlike her, I won’t leave you for another man.” 

Blowing a kiss at Will and a murderous look at Frankie she disappears into her apartment, slamming the door and sending a wave of choking floral perfume into the hall. 

Neither of them say anything more as Will unlocks the apartment door and holds it open for her. She expects him to grab her again as soon as it closes, but he walks right past her and over to his desk where he starts routing through the doors and muttering to himself. 

Frankie frowns at his back in confusion. “Will?”

“I never slept with her.” He says without turning around, opening yet another drawer and letting out an excited yelp when he finds what he’s looking for. 

Frankie nods at his turned back. “I know.” 

Will turns towards her with a look of desperation on his face. “I mean it, Francesca. I didn’t, not once, not with anyone.” 

Walking towards him Frankie steps into his space and moves one hand to brush over the arch of his cheek. “I believe you Will.” 

Tilting forward Will rests his forehead against Frankie’s temple and brushes his lips over her cheek. It hurts to think of him having been with someone else, even though she knows she has no right to feel that way. She did this to them after all. 

She tried not to, but she often wondered when she was gone if he’d found someone new and was living the life she hoped to give him by leaving. She tried to convince herself everyday that’s what she wanted, even if it hurt like hell. Hurt so bad that there were times she typed an address into her phone telling Jai where he could find her body, only to delete it when someone who might be able to help her forget crossed her path. 

“I wouldn’t have blamed you.” Frankie murmurs softly. “I hurt you. I left you. I told you I didn’t want to be with you anymore. I don’t have a right to be mad if you were with someone else Will. You more than anyone know I don’t have the right to judge what you did after I left you.”

“Never. Only you Francesca. Only you for the rest of forever.”

Closing her eyes against the tears threatening to fall Frankie whispers her promise back. “Only you, Whiskey. I swear.”

Kissing her softly, Will leans back and holds up a black marker. “Now I just need the rest of the world, specifically those in this building to know I’m not available.”

Frankie looks at him in question. “With a marker?”

Nodding in confirmation Will, uncaps the marker with dramatic flair. “Not just a marker, pretty girl, a sharpie. They’re the Cadillac of markers.”

Frankie pinches her lips around the rising need to call him a dork. He really is cute when he’s trying to be dramatic. 

This is not what she pictured would be happening five minutes after they entered the apartment - she thought there’d be a lot more clothes on the ground by now - but she’s not sorry. Will’s eyes are bright and happy, his tongue is poking out from the corner of his mouth and he’s concentrating hard at writing something on his brace she can’t see. 

Honestly she’s a little thankful for the reprieve. This morning, she was feeling brave and ready to jump into bed with Will and push past all the fears welling inside her. But now, having spent the majority of the day thinking about it, her nerves have come back full force. She’s still going to do it, she owes him that much, but she’s more scared than she’d like to admit. 

“Perfect.” He mutters, then holds his arm out for her to see what he’s written on the palm of his brace. 

“Property of Francesca.” Frankie reads aloud. 

A goofy grin lights up Will’s face. “Yep, I’m yours Sass and if Nicky or anyone else comes near me I’m just going to hold my arm up like this so they know not to bother.”

Frankie arches one eyebrow at him. “Pretty confident in your appeal aren’t you Whiskey.”

Will sends her a cocky look. “Psst, I’m a catch and you know it.” 

“Did your mum tell you that?”

“My girlfriend did.” Will corrects, pulling her close and landing a kiss on the corner of her mouth. 

Frankie wraps her arms around his neck and returns his kiss with one of her own. “Hmmm sure you can trust her? I heard she cheated on you.”

Will shrugs and pulls her even closer, lips ghosting hers with each word. “Just with Jai, and I can’t really blame her, he looks damn good in a suit.”

Frankie laughs softly against his lips. “Sure you don’t want to be dating him instead.”

“Nah, I like you better.”

“Good.”

“Really good.” Will whispers, then kisses her in earnest, slipping his hands under the back of her shirt and encouraging her to forget all about Jai. 

Tracing the same path they took that morning, Frankie finds herself once again standing in the doorway of their bedroom with Will, intentions clear and nothing standing in their way.

Nothing except the fear building in Frankie’s stomach and the nerves threatening to buckle her knees. She’s not afraid of him. She’s never been afraid of him. She’s afraid of herself. 

Pulling his shirt quickly over his head and pushing him backward he stumbles and lands on the bed and Frankie crawls on top of him still fully clothed. Ignoring the dizziness in her head and the pain in her chest she latches onto his neck and reaches for his belt buckle. 

She’s determined. She won’t ruin this for him.

Will is trying to slow her down, trying to be gentle and caring. Calling her name and stroking her hair. But Frankie is certain she’ll lose her nerve if she doesn’t do this right now. If she doesn’t prove to herself that she can. If she doesn’t prove she’s not scared. So she pulls out of his grasp and off the bed, pulling down Will’s pants and boxers as she does and kneels between his legs. 

She doesn’t look up at Will, she can’t. She knows from his tone when he says her name and the way he’s moving to sit up that he knows something is wrong and she needs to distract him before it’s too late. Tilting her head so her hair falls in front of her face, Frankie grabs hold of Will’s hips and leans forward taking him in her mouth and sucking hard before the darkness blurring her vision can fully take over. 

“Shit, Frankie.” Will gasps, and pauses in his movement.

_Don’t stop Francesca just keep going. Keep going, don’t ruin this for him._ Frankie obeys the voice in her head and sucks harder, moving her head in a faster motion and humming deep in her throat the way that makes him shiver and curl his toes. _Don’t stop Francesca, don’t stop._

“Don’t. Stop Francesca.” The voice isn’t coming from inside her head anymore, it’s coming from Will and he’s asking her to stop. _She can’t stop, she needs to keep going. She can’t ruin this for him._

“Frankie stop.” Will asks again, pushing her off of him by her shoulders and sitting up fully.

Sitting back on her knees, Frankie covers her face with her hands and bows her head. _She ruined it. Just like everything else, she ruined this too._

“Frankie?”

“I’m sorry Will. I’m so sorry.”

She hears the shuffle of Will pulling his boxers back into place then his hands are gentle on her face, tilting it back and pulling her hands away, taking in the tears falling from her eyes when he does. 

The look on his face breaks her heart. “Oh Sass, come here.”

Pulling her off the ground she’s in his lap with her face pressed into his neck, tears silently falling while he rubs her back before the room stops spinning around her. 

“I’m sorry Will. I’ll make it good for you, I swear. I can do better, I promise. Let me try again, please. I can do it, I swear I can.” Her words are muffled by his neck, but clear enough that even she can hear the tremor in her words. 

Will presses a kiss to her temple. “Shh Sass, you don’t need to do anything.” 

Pulling back she looks at him through her tears. “Yes I do, I need to do this. I need to make it good for you. I need to make it right.”

Lifting her shaking hands to his lips Will kisses them softly before brushing the hair from her face. “You’re what’s good for me Frankie, and us together is always right. But not if you’re not ready, it needs to be good for you too Sass. It can’t be one sided, isn’t that what you told me?”

A tiny amount of fear floats away as his words sink in and she’s whispering the rest to him before she even realizes what she’s doing. 

She’s afraid he’ll think of the men she let touch her and change his mind about her. She’s afraid he’ll find her new harsh angles as disgusting and unappealing as she does. She’s afraid she’s forgotten how to please him. She’s afraid she’s forgotten how to feel. She’s afraid she forgotten how to touch someone out of love and not anger. She’s afraid of how she’ll feel to be touched the same way. And more than anything she’s afraid of asking him to use a condom, because she’s terrified of getting pregnant again. 

Will listens patiently to all her fears without interruption. He calmly rubs her back and toys with her fingers and doesn’t try to brush the tears from his face or hers away. 

“I’m sorry Sass, I should have realized. But, you were so flirty and determined this morning that I never thought…I’m sorry.”

“I was going to be brave for you I swear I was. You make me want to be brave Will. I just…” She doesn’t know what she wants to say. Lucky for her Will has always been able to understand her even when she can’t figure it out. 

“I know baby, I know.” Will murmurs, wrapping his arms around her and pulling her close, stoking her hair and rocking her gently. 

To her surprise he has fears too, and he shares them quietly. He’s scared he’s going to hurt her, leave a mark on her body, however unintentional and she won’t trust him anymore. He’s scared he won’t be able to protect her from the memories of those that hurt her. He’s scared he won’t be able to convey how loved and cherished she is. He’s scared he won’t live up to her memory of him. And he’s absolutely terrified that she’ll change her mind about him and leave again. 

She holds him tight and tries to search deep down for the brave she had this morning, his words helping her find a piece of it, but not enough to eclipse the fear. 

“Here’s what we’re going to do.” Will leans back, brushes the hair from her face and gives her an encouraging smile. “We’re going to save the fish.”

“What?” Frankie laughs bewildered. 

“We’re going to take a shower. Together. We’re going to wash our sins away if you will, relearn things we’ve forgotten and learn new things that have changed. We’re going to spend hours getting comfortable with each other again. And I’ll apologize in advance if certain parts of me get a little excited during the whole thing, but it’s been a while since he’s seen someone so pretty and he sometimes forgets his manners.”

Frankie shakes her head and tilts forward to hide a blush. “Will.” 

Tilting her head back again so he’s looking straight into her eyes he turns serious. “But before we do any of this I need you to agree to something.”

Heart full of love for the man before her, she already knows she’ll agree to whatever he wants. “What’s that.”

“I need you to promise me that you won’t try to have sex with me again.”

Frankie feigns outrage. “William Stoddard Chase!”

Will narrows his eyes. “How come you get to know my name, but I can’t know yours?”

“It’s in my file Whiskey, you could look anytime.”

“That would be cheating.”

“Always the boy scout.”

“Sexy right?”

“So sexy.” Frankie deadpans. 

Looking proud, Will gleefully adds to his presumed sexiness. “Fun fact, the name Stoddard means stud. My parents clearly saw the potential right away.”

Frankie smirks. “Or it was more of a wish and a prayer kinda situation.”

Will frowns good-naturedly at her sass before turning serious. “I mean it though Frankie. No more sex. Not until you’re ready. Until we’re ready. And for real, not because you think I want it, or because you think you have too. There’s no time table or rules about how we need to do this. It’s our story Sass, no one else's, we get to choose how it’s written.”

“I love you.” Frankie murmurs in response. She can’t think of anything else to say. 

“To Pluto Sass.” Will murmurs and leans forward to catch her lips with his. “Now let's go save some fish.”

*******************

They save the fish three times over the next four days. And each time Will keeps a close eye out for any signs of distress coming from Frankie. 

The first time the signs had been the most obvious with her asking to keep the lights off in the washroom. Only the light from the bedroom illuminated the room in a dim glow, casting them in shadows as they relearned the curves and angles of one another. 

The next day he managed to coax her into showering during the day and allowed the light from the window to caress their bodies as they washed and rinsed. She touched him freely and only flinched once when he ran the loofah a little too low on her body. 

The third time took him by surprise, mostly because it was the middle of the night and she had struggled to get to sleep. Only relaxing when he agreed to her shy request to sleep without his shirt on so she could feel his skin pressed against her, as he traced his name on her body. 

Waking him with a series of kisses to his face she silently requested he follow her by holding his hand and leading him into the washroom, guided only by the light of the full moon outside. Turning on the water she stepped in first and pulled him tight against her once inside. 

Their clothes immediately suctioned to their skin and she guided his hands while he helped her undress then removed his boxers, kicking them to the corner and forgetting about them when she reached for him again. They didn’t talk, just kissed and massaged and stroked. She wrapped her hand around him and he swiftly tried to pull back. She wouldn’t let him, just continued to kiss him, tongue moving in a way that mirrored her hand and had Will jerking and gasping for air in under a minute. 

“Frankie.” Will groans, head dropping to her shoulder as he tries to restrain himself. 

“Shh Whiskey, I’ve got you.” Frankie murmurs and rocks her hips, bumping into her hand as she speeds up her stokes. 

Moving his hands to grab her hips tighter than he probably should, he buries his face in her neck and gasps for breath. Pulling her infinitely closer and panting her name, Will feels his body spasm and a relief so brilliant he’s momentarily blind overcomes him.

It takes a minute for Will to form conscious thought again. Frankie is still standing in the circle of his arms, rubbing his back and peppering kisses to his chest. Guiding her face to his, he kisses her deeply and thoroughly. She lets him until he tries to push her back against the wall. A hand to his chest and small shake of her head stops him, this is as far as she’s comfortable with tonight and he won’t push for more. 

Without words he kisses his agreement and reaches for a towel while she turns off the shower and steps out leaving their wet clothes behind. 

Wrapping her in a towel he reaches for his own before leading her to the bedroom and moving to the dresser to grab them both new clothes. 

A hand on his wrist stops him. 

“Not tonight Whiskey, please. I want to feel you.”

Kissing her on the forehead he agrees and removes both their towels, lifts the blankets for her to slip under and follows right after. 

They sleep in a tangle that night and in the morning, again without words or provocation she surprises him by guiding him slowly over that line to becoming lovers once more. 

It’s not easy, she panics halfway through and they stop. But it doesn’t take long for her to find her brave again and they cross the line with a tenderness and sense of rightness that neither of them were sure they’d ever experience again. 

********************

They’re lovers again for only a few hours before their bubble is burst in the harshest of ways. 

One phone call. One message. One Threat. 

One broken deal. 

Ollerman is back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So we still don't know why Frankie was pointing a gun at Will's head, but it I were a betting woman I'd think it might have to something to do with Ollerman's return...but that's just me.


	18. Chapter 18

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry...

_Left foot, right foot. Left foot, right foot. Just keep moving._ Frankie continues the manta in her head. Holding Will’s hand tightly as they make their way closer and closer to the Dead Drop, a place she hasn’t been in months. A place she’d never thought she’d be again. 

They had been lying in bed, lazily exploring each other's bodies, relishing in the feel of a post orgasmic haze and the release of lingering fears when the call had come in. 

At first they had ignored Will’s phone when Ray’s name came across the screen. Will wasn’t clear for work yet and neither were eager for an interruption of their slow and continuing intimate reunion. But, it rang again a minute later. With a sigh and a demand she not move, Will was reaching for the phone to silence the ringer when Frankie’s phone began ringing in tandem. 

Not the phone that she had reclaimed since her return, where she regularly got messages from Susan and Will when they weren’t together. It was the phone that only Jai had the number to that called to her from her bag, hidden in the back of the closet her clothes once again resided in. Ice replaced the warmth that Will had filled her veins with just moments ago as she scrambled off the bed to answer it. 

She hears Will’s phone stop ringing then almost immediately start again. Her movements seeming to have startled him into forgetting he was going to turn it off.

“Frankie?”

“Answer the phone Will.” Frankie responds, while pressing the accept button on hers, bringing it to her ear and walking out of the bedroom, ignoring the chill of the apartment on her naked flesh as she makes her way into the kitchen. 

“You need to come in.” Jai’s voice is harsh and firm. 

Frankie frowns at the phone and rubs a thumb along the corner of the counter. “Come in where?”

“Dead Drop, you and Will need to come in right now.” Jai’s using the same tone he used when he called to tell her about the accident and Frankie feels her heart stop.

Swallowing harshly, Frankie forces enough air into her lungs to respond. “What’s wrong?” 

“We’ll talk about it when you get here.” Jai answers quickly, clearly not wanting to be on the phone any longer. 

“Jai.” Frankie breathes, already knowing, but praying she’s wrong. 

“Ollerman’s back.”

Frankie feels her knees begin to buckle and has to grip the edge of the counter to keep from falling.

“Francesca?”

“Yeah.”

“Hurry.” And with a click he’s gone. 

All the blood in Frankie’s body suddenly feels like it is rushing swifty through her veins, pounding in her ears, and leaving her limbs heavy and lifeless.

Ollerman’s back. He’s back because she broke their deal. He’s back and he’s going to hurt Will. Will isn’t safe. 

The thought has Frankie falling to the floor, pressing her back to the cupboards, knees to her chest and fist in her mouth to muffle the sounds of her sobs. She’s going to have to leave again. She’s going to have to hide. She’s going to be alone again. He’ll be safe if she’s alone. She should never have come back. 

“Stop it. Stop it right now.” Will’s voice is firm, but not angry as he stands a few feet away, looking down at her as he gives his order. 

"Will."

“Stand up Francesca.”

“Will I’m…” 

Will doesn’t move closer to her, just stands before her, still naked, hands on his hips and fire in his eyes. “I said, stand up Francesca.”

Frankie pulls herself up without another word. His tone and his look might fool some into thinking he’s angry with her, but not her. She can see the way he’s tilting his body forward like he wants to reach out for her, and the corner of his mouth is pulsing like it does when he’s trying to be firm when he really wants to cry. 

“Come here.” His tone has softened, but remains firm and Frankie is stepping towards him before she can figure out what words she needs to say. 

When she’s close enough Will reaches out with just one finger and traces the tattoo on her hip. “Don’t let him win Sass. He doesn’t get to win. Not before we’ve even had a chance to fight. He doesn’t get to hurt us anymore. He doesn’t get to hurt you anymore Frankie. He doesn’t get to take you away from me again. I won’t let him.” 

Frankie tilts forward to rest her forehead on Will’s chest and breathes him in. Trying in vain to borrow some of his confidence and strength. 

Softening his tone to a whisper, Will lifts his hand and runs it through her hair, “We don’t know what this is yet. We don’t know what he wants. We don’t know what he’ll do. But, we do know that being apart doesn’t work. We know it hurts more than it helps. We know we’re stronger together. And we know that we belong to each other. Forever. Whatever this is isn’t going to change that Francesca.”

Wrapping her arms around his middle, Frankie holds him tight as she whispers her response. “I’m scared, Will. I’m scared he’s going to hurt you. I’m scared I’m going to have to leave you. I don’t want to be without you again.”

“Look at me.” Will demands softly, lifting her face so her eyes have no choice but to find his. “You’re mine and I’m yours, always. Nothing’s going to change that. He had his chance to break us, to end us, and he failed. We won’t fail Francesca, we won’t be broken. We’re stronger than he is, and together we’re going to end him.”

She wants to believe him, she really does, but still, “I’m terrified Whiskey.”

Will smiles softly, kisses her gently and links his fingers through hers. “Just hold my hand pretty girl. I’ll keep you safe.”

And so she has. She’s kept her hand in his the entire way to the bar. Past every store, through every crowd of people, and along every sidewalk. Eyes darting and looking for danger at each turn, she never lets go. She can’t, if she does Ollerman will get him, he’ll be gone and she’ll be alone, she’s absolutely certain of it. 

They’re a block away from the bar when Frankie feels the brave she’s borrowing by holding Will’s hand start to fade and fear overtake her. She hates that Ollerman’s done this to her. That she let him do this to her. She used to be stronger, she thought she was making progress at finding that strength again. But, with only a few feet to go she’s not feeling any of that reclaimed strength anymore. 

Holding tighter to Will she feels him squeeze her hand in response. Soothing her fear or calming his own she’s not sure, but either way she’s grateful. He won’t let her go. 

Rounding the last corner, Frankie spots Jai leaning against the wall outside the bar and just a little bit more of her fears are eased. 

“Francesca.” Jai murmurs as soon as they get close and something resembling relief flashes in his eyes. 

“Jai” Frankie murmurs back, holding his eyes with hers and silently asking for something only he can give. 

Nodding slightly at her, Jai turns to Will. “Give us a minute will you. I need a moment alone with her.”

Looking at Frankie, who offers him a slight smile and nod, Will agrees, kisses her on the temple and disappears into the bar. 

As soon as the door closes behind him Jai turns on her. “Get your shit together Francesca. If you’re going to keep Will safe and take down that son of a bitch you need your game face, not this weepy whoa is me persona you’re carrying around. Find your mean God damn it. And find it fast. We have a job to do and I trained you to be a warrior and save yourself, not a princess waiting around for someone to save you.”

The words are harsh and biting and full of anger. And they’re exactly what she needs. Will tried to be firm with her at the apartment because he knows that it’s sometimes what she needs. But no one does it better than Jai. No one is better at helping her dry her eyes and get the job done. He’s her best and most loyal cheerleader and when this is done she’s going to yell right back at him. He would expect nothing less. 

Straightening her shoulders, tightening her jaw and fisting her hands, Frankie nods at him and narrows her eyes in determination. 

Tilting his head, Jai eyes her for weakness. “You good?”

“Let's get this bastard.”

A corner kicks up at the side of Jai’s mouth. “That’s my girl.”

***************************

“What are they doing out there?” Susan questions Will, as she joins him at the bar where he’s looking out the window, watching Jai wave his finger in Frankie's face, and her lifting her chin in defiance. 

“Pep talk.” is Will’s simple response. 

“Ah.” Susan nods in understanding, before inquiring gently, “How’s she doing?”

Will smirks. “You tell me. You’ve been having those unofficial friendly chats with her just about everyday this week.” 

Susan looks offended. “Forget it, you know I can’t talk about those chats. They’re private.” But then she smirks at him, “Saving the fish? Really Will?”

“It’s an important cause!”

“Uh-huh”

Will casts a look outside to see if Jai and Frankie are on their way in, but they’re still speaking, heads bowed closely together. 

“It worked.”

“What worked?”

“Saving the fish.” Susan arches an eyebrow at him. “It was perfect Suz. She initiated it even though she was scared, hell I was scared. But we went slow and careful and safe. It was love Suz, real love and right and everything it should be. I cried, she teased me, but her eyes were glassy too. And she was happy Susan, so happy, and I could tell she felt truly at peace for the first time in a long time.”

Will smiles as he remembers the soft smile on Frankie's face, and the feeling of her body shaking against his when he made a joke about something he can’t even remember now. 

The smile suddenly drops from Will’s face. “And then the phone rang.”

“And how did she react?” 

“Shut down. Tried to hide it from me. Tried to apologize again.”

“And what did you do?”

“I was firm, but loving. That’s what you told me right. Firm so she knows I mean what I say and I’m not just trying to make her feel better. But, with love so she knows she’s safe and it’s ok to tell me how she’s feeling.”

“Gold Star for listening, Will.”

Will beams, then turns serious. “She’s scared.”

“She doesn’t look scared now.” Susan says, and nods towards the door where a very pissed off and determined looking Frankie enters followed by a proud looking Jai. 

“I need a drink.” Frankie mutters, as she walks by them and moves around the bar to pull out shot glasses and a bottle of vodka.

“Oh fun.” Susan exclaims and moves to join her. 

Will watches his girlfriend pours his best friend a drink, then swallow one herself before slamming down her glass with a smile on her lips and a look in her eyes that dares someone to cross her. 

“One day you’ll teach me the dark art of handling her, won’t you Jai?”

Will watches Frankie’s forever champion smile at him out of the corner of his eye. “One day William. But not today.”

********************

Standish arrives next. Shirt untucked with a bright blue stain that Frankie can’t fathom the cause of, pants wrinkled and neon orange shoes. He’s every bit the tech wonder she remembers and until he spots her his face is full of happiness.

She knows Will hasn’t seen him since that night at the apartment. He tried a few times to reach out but Standish wouldn’t return his calls. She knows Jai and Susan have talked to him, but both have been tight lipped on the subject. The only thing Susan would say was to give him time, and reminded her that his dad disappeared on him when he was a kid. The only thing Jai would say is that he’s handling it and she shouldn’t worry.

But, right now as she watches his face slip from bright and happy to lost and resentful the moment his eyes find her, all she can do is worry. 

“I’m just going to get set up.” Standish mumbles and turns to head into the back room. 

“Hey Standish wait up.” Will calls, then shoots Frankie a half smile before following. Jai right behind him. 

Frankie sighs as she watches them go then turns back to face Susan. “It’s killing Will that Standish won’t talk to him. He hates when people he loves are mad at him. Or when anyone is mad at him really.”

“He’s not the only one bothered by it.” Susan says gently. 

Frankie pours herself another shot. “Yeah well I don’t really have a right to be mad at Standish now do I?” 

Moving her hand so it rests on top of Frankie’s, Susan tries to reassure her. “We all have a right to our feelings Frankie. What we choose to do with them is what matters.”

Frankie just shrugs and takes a sip of her drink, only to almost spit it out again at Susan’s next words.

“I heard you finally saved those fish this morning.”

Choking on her drink, Frankie tries to breathe around a cough as she takes in the smirk on Susan’s face through watery eyes. 

Wiping at her mouth with the back of her hand Frankie tries to look somewhat respectable as she mumbles her reply. “He’s worse than a middle school girl.”

Susan laughs softly. “Yes he is.” 

Frankie stands up straighter and smirks right back at Susan. “But yes we did save those fish and we would have saved the whales too if…” The words catch in her throat at the reason they didn’t get to. She had forgotten these last few minutes why they’re here at all. Had pushed her fears so far down she forgot to be on guard. She forgot to be scared. 

“Frankie?” Susan’s voice cuts through Frankie’s pondering on how she could possibly have let herself forget to be fearful of what’s coming. Before she can open her mouth to respond, the door opens again and Ray appears looking haggard and stressed. 

Locking the door securely behind him he motions for them to follow him into the back room where they find Jai and Standish hunched over their computers and Will standing awkwardly nearby. 

Pressing the button to secure the room and seal the exits Ray turns to address them all. “Ollerman made contact this morning.”

Will immediately seeks clarification. “Made contact with who?”

Glancing momentarily at Frankie, Ray responds. “Kevin Morrison, leader of the team that’s been assigned to track him.”

This time it’s Standish that looks confused and is asking the questions. “I thought we were the team tracking him. And Ollerman has been off the radar for months. Why is he back now?”

Glancing at Frankie again Ray tries his best to answer Standish’s questions in order. “Ollerman’s case got reassigned after the trip to Israel. He’s been laying low, but not gone completely. From what the new team has been able to put together he’s been focusing mostly on small jobs, creating just enough chaos to cause trouble locally, but nothing on the world stage. It appears he’s started making bolder moves in the past few weeks. Gearing up for something, but Morrison’s team is at a loss as to what.” 

Reaching into his pocket Ray retrieves a black burner phone. “He sent a message to Morrison this morning, the first and only time he’s acknowledged any agency that’s been tracking him since the case was reassigned. He sent this phone and demanded Team Whiskey be ready when he reaches out in about 30 minutes from now.”

Putting the phone on the table it’s immediately snatched up by Jai who connects it to his computer and begins searching for clues and setting up a trace for when the call comes through. 

Silence deafens the room for a few seconds each person trying to sort through their own thoughts before asking anymore questions. 

Standish, of course, breaks through that silence and asks the questions that only three people in the room know the complete answers to. 

“Why us? Why now? If he knows it’s not even us trying to stop him anymore why isn’t he talking to who is? Why is he talking to anyone at all?”

An uncomfortable quiet fills the room. Frankie knows why. 

Will knows why, that’s why he’s looking at her like he wants to sweep her into his arms and hide her away from the world. 

Jai knows why, that’s why he’s looking at her with fire in his eyes daring her to act weak. 

Susan knows a lot, but not everything. Frankie couldn’t bear to tell her about the baby she lost, so she told her she made a deal to protect the team instead. 

Ray clearly knows enough to know she was the reason for the team switch and Ollerman’s return. Frankie knows that knowledge didn’t come from Susan though. He might act dumb at times but Ray is smart enough to figure out the timing and whatever the message from Ollerman was it clearly mentioned her. 

She has no idea what Standish knows, what Jai has told him, but she’s betting it was very little. 

“I broke our deal.” Frankie confesses. Her voice is quiet, but it doesn’t waver. Jai’s right, now is not the time for weakness. 

“What?” Standish asks, turning to look directly at her for the first time since seeing her at Will’s.

Clearing her throat Frankie speaks louder. “I made a deal with Ollerman before I left. I broke it by coming back. That’s why he’s back, why he’s asking for us. For me.”

Standish kicks back from the desk and stands up, anger and betrayal written all over his face. “You made a deal with a terrorist to abandon us?” 

Lifting her chin slightly Frankie nods. “Yes.”

Rounding on Will, Standish’s eyes are wide. “Did you know about this, did you know she made a deal with the devil?”

Will shakes his head softly and puts his hand on Standish’s shoulder. “Not until after she came back. She did it to keep us safe Standish. She was doing what she thought was best.”

Glaring at Frankie, Standish practically snarls his next question. “What was best for us, or best for herself?”

“That’s enough.” Jai yells sharply. “What’s done is done, right or wrong, misguided or not, Francesca did what she felt she had to do to keep us safe and has paid the price every day since. You will not make her feel guilty for that Standish. I don’t care if it hurt your feelings or made you mad. She’s back now and we have a fucking job to do so stop acting like a child and get to work.”

“Jai.” Frankie steps forward and tries to calm him. She doesn’t want him to fight with Standish over her, over what she did. 

Jai turns on her next. “Don’t you dare Francesca. You have nothing to feel guilty about or apologize for and I’m tired of hearing you try. We’re going to stop him, we’re going to end this, and then you can say whatever it is you think you need to say. But until then we’re all going to act like the agents we are and get this shit done.”

Jai is breathing heavily when she crosses the room to stand in front of him. Lifting one hand to his face and swiping her thumb across the rough hair of his beard, Frankie smiles. “Yes Jai.”

“Good.” Jai nods and returns to his computer typing away and ignoring the lingering awkwardness in the room. Standish following his lead and doing the same. 

Moving to her side Will runs his hand over Frankie’s back and laces his fingers through hers. He’s trying to comfort her, and for just a moment she’s going to bask in it. Any minute now Ollerman is going to call and throw their lives into chaos again and Frankie wants more than anything to have the steadiness of Will beside her when he does. 

“You okay?” Will whispers softly, so softly she’s sure not one other person in the room can make out his words. 

Turning into him she lifts her hand to his cheek just like she did to Jai a moment ago. “Do you love me?”

His response is instant. “To Pluto Sass.”

“Then I’m okay.” Frankie confirms with a smile, tilting forward to rest her forehead on his chin and feeling him press a kiss to her temple.

“Frankie.” Ray interrupts their moment of calm, handing her an envelope with a small smile. 

“What’s this?” Frankie questions, opening the envelope and finding her badge and gun inside. 

“Casey says welcome back. And that he hopes you enjoyed your leave. I for one am glad you finally got around to using most of your missed vacation time. The paperwork was becoming a pain.” 

Frankie lifts her eyes to Ray in question. She didn’t take a leave, she resigned. She called Casey herself to make sure Ollerman’s case was reassigned, she’s sure Ray knows that. And she gave Jai the paperwork to turn in, including the gun and badge she’s once again holding. Clearly he never did. 

Moving her eyes to Jai she finds him watching her, lips pulled tight, eyes dark in challenge. He refused to believe she wasn’t coming back, so he made sure Casey left the door open for her when she was ready. She’s not sure that she’s ready, or that she even wants to come back at all, but she thanks him with a small upturn of her lips either way. 

“Thanks Ray.” Frankie mutters, slipping the gun into her pants at the small of her back, its weight and cool steel offering additional comfort and courage.

Squeezing her hand Will smiles at her gently before straightening his shoulders moving away from her and towards Jai and Standish. “What do we know so far?”

“Nothing really.” Standish responds. “The phone was bought in New York, right around the corner from Frankie’s old place actually. A place called Harold’s Food and Things. Not a very creative name now is it?”

_Harold’s not a creative kinda guy._ Frankie thinks, thinking of the grumpy old man who runs that store and how he used to yell at her about her wet shoes making a mess every time she went in to buy something, even if it was bone dry outside. Some days she’d purposely find a puddle to step in before she went in just to piss him off. She missed him too. 

“Well that’s not a coincidence.” Ray mutters, everyone else nodding in agreement. 

“Anything else.” Will pushes for more.

Standish frowns. “No, nothing. Not until he calls, in theory we can track him if he stays on long enough, but we all know he’s going to have tons of security to prevent us from doing that. So really we just need to see what he wants before we can make a move.” 

Ray pulls out a thumb drive and hands it to Jai. “Morrison gave me everything they had on Ollerman. I think he was happy to dump the Ollerman file back on us to be honest. They haven’t been able to make any progress in the last five months and have been exhausting themselves chasing leads that don’t go anywhere.”

“Yeah well we’re going to get him. He’s not getting away again.” Will’s voice is hard and firm and so sure it causes a wave of hope to pass through Frankie. They will get him. She won’t let herself believe otherwise anymore. 

The next 20 minutes are spent mostly in silence. Jai and Standish type away at the computers with Will standing behind them watching their screens and asking a quiet question occasionally. 

Ray is on the phone talking with Morrison gathering any last minute details he can, while Susan and Frankie look over the case files of the most recent Ollerman sightings and connections. 

The files are a mess and the most recent information is outdated by weeks. Frankie is just about to mention that fact when the phone they’ve all been glancing at repeatedly begins to ring. 

No one moves for a fraction of a moment and then there’s a flurry of activity. Computers are standing by, tracking is set and bodies are tense. They’re ready. Or she hopes so anyway.

Before the phone has a chance to ring for the second time, Will reaches out and accepts the call, eyes on her when he does.

“Ollerman”

“Whiskey” Ollerman’s voice rings through loud and clear. “Well isn’t this nice getting to hear your voice after so many months apart. I’ve missed you old friend.”

“We’re not friends, you bastard.” Will fires back. 

“We’ll that’s to be expected I suppose. I should have reached out sooner, perhaps sent you some flowers after your little accident.”

“What do you want Alex?” Susan interrupts. 

“Hello Susan nice to have you here with us today. Can I get a roll call on everyone else. I did ask for the entirety of Team Whiskey to be present and I’m hoping I’m not being stood up.” 

Will’s hands fist at his sides. “We’re all here Ollerman, now what do you want?”

“Everyone?” Ollerman questions, and Frankie knows who exactly he’s looking for. 

Frankie shoots Will a look then takes a step closer to the phone. “I’m here, so stop with the games and tell us what you want.” 

“Tisk Tisk Tisk Agent Trowbridge. We had a deal. A deal you offered. A deal you clearly have broken. I should have seen it coming I suppose. But, I’m a little surprised you’re still alive if I’m being quite honest. I thought for sure you would have come after me, and when you didn’t I was certain you’d ended up dead somewhere. Probably by your own hand, not able to live with what you did.”

Frankie closes her eyes and breathes slowly. She was close to doing just that more time than she’d care to admit. So beaten down and heartbroken that death seemed like the only option. But she can’t show that weakness now, not to him. Opening her eyes she sees Will’s eyes on her, and she shakes her head when he moves to be closer to her.

Pushing confidence into her voice Frankie responds. “Sorry to disappoint you Ollerman, but I’m here now and I’m not going anywhere until you’re in a cell or in a hole. Personally I’m voting for the hole.”

Ollerman laughs. “Damn, but I have missed your feisty spirit. I’m amazed they let you come back after deserting them. Not Agent Datta of course, we both know he’s loyal to the end even after what you did. Edgar though with his abandonment issues, and Susan with her hatred of secrets, I bet there's still some tension there.”

Frankie thinks of the way Standish still won’t look at her, and while Susan doesn’t appear to hold a grudge she doesn’t know everything either and Frankie knows she’ll be upset to learn that more secrets have been purposely kept. 

“We’re fine Ollerman. Bump in the road, but we’re as solid as ever.” Will makes the statement with an edge to his voice that tells Frankie he’s on the verge of not being able to control his anger.

“Ah Whiskey. You’re the one I’m surprised by most. I know you loved her, but really to take her back after what she did? How can you ever trust her? How can you be sure she won’t leave again? How can you be in the same room as her knowing what she stole from you? I’m disappointed Whiskey, I expected more.”

“You can’t imagine how hurt I am by your disappointment.” Will says flatly, causing the rest of the team to smile briefly. 

Ollerman laughs, before his voice turns a little darker. “Did you not tell him pretty girl? Did you not tell him what you did? Does he not know about our deal? Our deal to keep him in the dark, while I go free and you disappear.”

Will’s voice is deadly. “I know. I just don’t care. Deals off Ollerman. I’m coming for you. We’re coming for you.”

Ollerman ignores him, “Did you not tell him that you killed his baby?” 

Frankie feels every eye in the room looking at her. Judging her, hating her, pitying her, but she only looks at Will. Will who is looking at her like he wants more than anything to reach out and hold her, but can’t because he knows if he does she’ll reject him in an effort to stay strong. She can’t break now, if she does Ollerman wins and she won’t let that happen. 

Holding Will’s gaze she straightens her shoulders, tilts her chin and clenches her jaw. She’s ready for a fight and Will recognizes that and smiles at her. 

“I know everything Ollerman. I know what you did to cause Frankie to miscarry. I know what you did to hurt her, and I know how you used that pain to your advantage. It stops now. You might have won the battle, but we’re coming for you and we’re going to win the war.”

If Ollerman is shocked that Will knows about the baby he doesn’t show it, “You always were good with the speeches, Whiskey. I’m just sorry this one will be wasted. I’ve already won, you just don’t know it yet.”

“What does that mean?” Susan asks, eyes still on Frankie, worry shining clear. 

“You’ll find out soon enough.” Is Ollerman’s cagey reply. 

“You still haven’t said why you called us.” Standish says. Eyebrows drawn together while he’s trying to process everything he’s heard in the past few minutes. 

Ollerman laughs like he did when he called Frankie to tell her about the baby and ice finds its way into her veins. “Well now that Frankie’s broken our deal I thought it was only right that we all get reacquainted. Before I kill you that is. That was the deal right Frankie, you stay away and they stay safe. They get to live their lives and find happiness without you in the way. Well now that you’re back it’s open season on Team Whiskey and I’m ready to collect my prize. I’m just calling to warn you about the danger she put you all in, the targets she placed on your backs. I’m a good guy like that. Stay safe team. You never know what dangers are lurking in the dark.” 

A click and then silence. He’s gone, and he took with him any sense of safety that Frankie had been starting to feel. Jai’s eyes are on the computer as he taps away at the keys searching in vain for any data that might give them a location. But every other set of eyes in the room linger on her. 

Clearing her throat, Frankie ignores them all and speaks to Jai. “Anything?”

“No, the signal is jumping around too much. He used a router so there’s no way to track him. But if I can locate the source...” Jai trails off, only to pump his fists in the air with excitement a few seconds later. “Got you, you bastard. Bordeaux, he’s in Bordeaux.”

Frankie doesn’t move her eyes from Jai when she shakes her head. “He’s trying to send us the wrong direction. He’s in Portugal. He’s got a villa in Porto.”

Jai’s fingers freeze on the keys. “You know where he is?”

Frankie nods. “Our deal was that Will wouldn’t hunt him. I made no such promise for myself. I sent Casey updates whenever I had them. They should all be in the file, but they’re not.”

“If you knew where he was this whole time why didn’t you just take him out?” Standish asks quietly, and with a kindness in his bewildered tone she doesn’t expect. 

Looking directly at him Frankie gives her reason. “Because if I failed you’d be dead. I wasn’t willing to risk that.”

  
  


************************

Four hours later Frankie is sitting alone in the last row of seats on a small private plane headed to France. Her source confirmed that Ollerman was still on site on Porto and was having dinner on his beachside villa’s patio when he called them. 

But, they know they’re probably being watched, so they’re flying to Bordeaux, as expected. From there they’ll make a show of setting up shop, before cutting off all contact and making their way to Portugal by boat. 

Jai’s pissed at her. But she expected that, she knows he’s been searching for Ollerman since she told him what happened and he’s mad she’s known all along where to find him and didn’t say a word. He knows what she was trying to do by not telling him, but he hates when she tries to protect him even if he spends most of his time trying to protect her. 

Ray has spent hours on the phone trying to organize ground surveillance in and around Bordeaux so whatever moles that still exist in the agencies can report to Ollerman. No one outside their team knows their real destination. 

Standish talked to Will and must have got enough of the story to feel guilty about having yelled at Frankie, because he hasn’t stopped trying to feed her since. Chips, candy, even half of his sub. But Frankie can’t eat and she really wishes he would go back to hating her because it’s making her feel worse that he looks like he’s going to cry every time she catches him watching her.

Will’s just mad. Mad at her for not saying anything about knowing where Ollerman was. Mad at Ollerman for telling secrets that Frankie and he both wanted kept that way. Mad at the wounds Ollerman has reopened. Mad that Frankie is hurting and feeling guilty, and mad at himself for not being able to stop it from happening. They talked and cried and held each other close in the back room of the bar before emerging, game faces on and ready to take Ollerman down, but still he’s mad.

Until a few minutes ago Will was beside her holding her hand and trying to soothe away her lingering fears and renewed guilt, but the pilot called him away to discuss something so Frankie now sits alone, battling the demons in her head and trying to breathe. 

Susan appears in the seat beside her and Frankie is hit with a new wave of panic. They’ve not talked since Ollerman called and while Frankie knows Will confirmed what Ollerman said on the phone, while she excused herself to call Casey in an effort to avoid that very conversion she knows she can’t hide from it forever. 

Closing her eyes she takes a deep breath and starts talking before Susan can ask any questions.

She tells her how excited she was when she found out she was pregnant. About the onesie she bought, that’s sitting in its box under the still standing Christmas Tree beside her still unopened gift. 

She tells her about the middle of the night trip to the clinic, the doctor that assumed Will was hurting her, and how much she cried as she cleaned up the washroom and threw out the bloody sheets. 

Her voice catches when she tells her how she stopped breathing and she almost passed out when Ollerman called and told her what he’d done. And how she made a deal so Will would never know and would be safe.

Rubbing at her hip she softly explains how she felt when she got Will’s name permanently inked on her body. How she thought it would let her keep a piece of him with her, when he had moved on and someone better would get to have the rest of him. Then whispers in shame about how she tried to forget, and how after a while she wanted it all to stop and almost made that happen more than once. She tells her everything. 

Including about this morning when she panicked right when Will was about to enter her because they forgot a condom and she’s terrified of getting pregnant again. How Will didn’t look mad or angry, didn’t lash out or hit her, and didn’t make her feel guilty or ashamed. How he stopped immediately, helped her calm down then reassured her that it was okay and they could stop. Then asking if it would make her more comfortable if he wore two, when she didn’t want to stop. 

She never once looks at Susan, not even when she’s done. Her head is bowed in shame and her hands are shaking, but her eyes are dry. She refuses to cry anymore. 

Susan, it seems, has no such aversion. “Look at me pobrecita.” 

Lifting her eyes to Susan she sees tears and sadness, but not pity. 

“You’re the strongest person I know Frankie, and if anyone can get through this it’s you. But you don’t have to do it alone. You never had to do it alone, we would have been there Frankie. I would have been there.”

Frankie sniffles and wipes at her nose with her sleeve. “I’m sorry I lied to you about why.”

Taking hold of Frankie’s hand Susan smiles gently, “I knew you were honey. You weren’t ready. I’m sorry Ollerman took that choice away from you. I’m sorry he’s taken so much away.”

Frankie bites her trembling lip, shakes her head and fights back the tears she refuses to let go. “I really wanted that baby Susan.”

“I know you did pobrecita.” 

Losing the fight Frankie lets the tears fall. “I really wanted that life with Will.”

“We’re going to have that life Sass. You and me and as many babies as you want.” Will interrupts, having returned from the front of the plane.

Susan looks at him then back at Frankie, before leaning forward to kiss Frankie’s wet cheek and whispering in her ear words that Will won’t hear, but that make Frankie blush and let out a low laugh. 

Moving so Will can reclaim his seat, Frankie watches as Susan moves to sit next to Ray a few rows ahead and rests her head on his shoulder.

She does the same to Will once he’s settled her into the circle of his arms. Leaning into him and letting the warmth of his body and the rhythmic strokes of his hand in her hair settle her into an emotionally exhausted semi-sleep. 

They’ll arrive in Bordeaux in less than six hours. Just in time to see the sunrise. And with any luck by this time tomorrow, they will have made their way to Ollerman’s villa, he’ll be dead and she might finally be able to feel the calm she’s been chasing for what feels like forever. 

**********************

Things don’t go smoothly. And that makes Will incredibly nervous. 

They manage to get to Bordeaux and ensure they’re seen by as many people as possible as they set up a work space and hold meetings with a task force about a plan that will never be executed. 

They go over maps and satellite images with local officials of places they know Ollerman won’t be. And they meet with local informants about any information they might have. Shockingly they have none, though a few try to convince them they do, so Will and Frankie listen patiently to the lies, pay them and walk away without a second thought to the mistruths offered. 

A storm however, wreaks havoc on their true plan of leaving Ray to handle the locals while the rest of them take a boat overnight to Porto. 

They can’t risk travelling by land and have a traffic camera image or a border crossing record make its way to Ollerman. So they’re forced to wait an additional 24 hours until they can make their move. Lucky for them Ollerman must be feeling secure in his hiding spot, and the information he’s getting, because he doesn’t move and is still at the villa with minimal security when they arrive the next night. 

Frankie’s contact has arranged for there to be a wide but secure circle around the house in case Ollerman tries to flee before they get to him. They’re still there now Frankie assures him, and Jai confirms it, once he’s talked to Gregario the mercenary that faced the wrath of Jai for not informing him that he knew where Ollerman was when he asked. Gregario didn’t seem overly concerned with Jai, just smiled at Frankie, blew her a kiss and reminded her she owned him a favour. 

The storms have passed, but the cloud cover remains and it’s pitch black when they breach the villa’s walls with silencers and night vision goggles. Standish is able to use satellites and heat images to locate the guards and Will and Jai are quick to take them out. Frankie and Susan hang back to pick off any stragglers. 

Jai and Susan have both been doing more field work since Frankie’s been gone, and while he wants her at his side, she hasn’t fired a gun once in five months and after some coaxing admitted to feeling rusty. He suggested that maybe she stay back with Standish and had to duck a stapler that was thrown at his head in response. Will smiles a little under his mask at the memory. 

“How many more Standish?” Will whispers, as he makes his way through the rear garden and closer to the entrance of the house. 

“Two around front, no wait Susan just took care of that.” 

“You’re welcome.” Comes Susan’s sunny reply. 

“You’re clear outside. I’ve disabled the alarm and the locks, and looped the security feed so you’re good to enter. Connecting to interior video feed now.”

Will looks up to see Susan and Frankie rounding the building. He can’t see much of their faces, but what he does see reassures him. Frankie doesn’t look scared, she looks pissed and slightly cocky. And a pissed and cocky Frankie is the very best Frankie to be on a mission with. Pissed off Frankie gets things done, cocky Frankie does it with a smile. He loves that smile. 

“Hey pretty girl.” Will whispers as soon as she’s in earshot. 

“Keep it in your pants Whiskey.” Frankie snarks back. Snarky Frankie is also great on a mission. 

Standish interrupts Will’s retort. “Okay cameras are live. I can see five people inside. Two at the kitchen table, looks like they're having a midnight snack. You’ll be visible to them about 10 feet beyond that door you’re about to walk through.”

Will points to himself and Jai, and Jai nods in response. They’ll handle the first of the guards quietly, and hopefully without the others noticing. 

“There’s one in the hall leading towards the bedrooms to the right of the kitchen, he’s just pacing back and forth looking hella bored, and slightly sick.” Standish continues. 

Will points to Frankie and Susan. They nod back in acknowledgement. 

“And there are two in the bedroom.” Standish pauses before continuing. “Oh that’s nasty. Okay, I get the sick looking guard now. It’s Ollerman and some barely legal looking blonde doing some R rated shit my tummy feels a little queasy having to watch so if you could take care of that real quick I would love it.”

Will can almost hear Frankie’s eye roll. “Weapons?”

”Yep a whole lot. Big ones too. But none of the guards seem very attentive. The ones in the kitchen don’t even have them in their hands; they're lying on the table beside them. And the guy in the hall is tossing his back and forth like a football. Anything to keep from focusing on the sounds coming from that bedroom I’m guessing.” Standish makes a gagging noise as he finishes his thought.

“Ollerman?” Will demands quietly trying to get Standish back on track.

“Nothing that I can see. He seems more focused on lady bits than weapons right now.”

“Gross.” Frankie and Jai say in unison then smile at each other. 

Will takes his spot in front of the door. “Okay we breach on three.” 

With the nods from the rest Will uses his fingers to count down. Slowly and quietly Will opens the door, moving forward Jai close behind, with Susan and Frankie at the rear. 

Moving slow he and Jai make it to the doorway of the kitchen and pause. Looking at Jai for confirmation, they raise their guns, step into the room and fire. One guard goes down immediately, slowly slipping out of his chair with a hole in his forehead. The second however, must have seen their reflection in the metal oven range because he moves and takes a bullet in the shoulder instead. 

Will is quick to shoot again burying one in the man’s chest killing him instantly, but not before he was able to throw the knife that was sitting beside him and be lucky enough to have it lodge itself into Jai’s thigh. 

“Standish?” Will whispers as he catches Jai before he falls, a look of agony on his face but not a sound passing his lips. 

“You’re good.” He assures them. “Guy in the hall didn’t even blink, and I’m pretty sure Ollerman isn’t able to focus on anything right now. Nothing happening outside either.”

“Here let me take him.” Susan steps forward to grab Jai’s other side and pull him off Will. 

“I’m fine. I can keep going.” Jai insists, even though he can barely stand and is clearly fighting a wave of dizziness. 

“You’re not.” Frankie insists, moving to stand in front of him. “Its okay. You got me this far. I can do the rest.”

“Francesca.” 

Frankie smiles at him softly. “I got this Jai, trust me.”

Narrowing his eyes and searching her face Jai slowly nods. “Be good.”

The smile on Frankie’s face grows wider. “Never.”

“Go, you two, before we lose our chance. I’ve got him.” Susan insists and waves off Will’s hesitation. 

“You good Fiery?” Will questions, looking at her seriously. 

Smirking, Frankie finds the courage to sass him back. “I’m always good Whiskey. But I already told you to keep it in your pants.”

“Nasty.” Standish comments much to their amusement, and with one last look of reassurance and a request that Standish have Gregario's team close in, Will and Frankie move out of the kitchen and down the hall. 

Just like Standish claimed, the guard in the hall isn’t paying any kind of attention to his surroundings and Will is able to take him out and catch his body before it can make a sound. Moving towards the bedroom door, Frankie’s hand is on the knob when Standish cuts in again.

“Guys we got a problem.” 

They freeze but don’t comment. 

“Ollerman just got a call, and it must be an important one cause he full on stopped and left the girl just laying there. He’s looking at the door guys. I’m pretty sure he knows you’re there. Shit the cameras cut out, switching back to thermal. What the hell, I’ve got someone…”

Standish is suddenly cut off. 

“Standish?” 

“Sassy? Sassy is that you outside my door. Did you bring Whiskey with you? Oh, this will be fun.” Ollerman calls from the other side of the door. 

Frankie and Will trade glances, Ollerman has nowhere to go, the house is surrounded. By Frankie’s guys this time, people she knows won’t let him get away. They could call it in now, have the house raided in seconds. Have Ollerman in cuffs in minutes. But with only a look they know they can’t do that. It needs to be them. They need to do this. It’s time to end this thing. 

With a nod of confirmation Will turns the knob and pushes the door open just far enough to throw a flash bang into the room before slamming it shut again. Two seconds later the bang is released and Will opens the door again and walks in, gun raised and Frankie right behind him. 

Ollerman is crouched beside the far side of the bed, thankfully having found a robe. The blonde is cowering half under the covers on the bed, crying loudly and covering her ears, and the room is full of smoke but they have their goggles on so they pay it no attention as they move towards the subject of their vengeance.

Frankie reaches the bed first pulling the blankets off the girl and motioning her off the bed and safely out of the way. 

Will rounds the bed and is only a few feet from Ollerman when he sees him smile then feels a crack on the back of his head and he stumbles to the ground, falling on his already weakened arm in pain. 

“Whiskey!” Frankie yells, lifting her gun and pulling the trigger, hitting Will’s attacker twice in the chest leaving him dead before he hits the ground. First trigger pulls in five months and she doesn’t miss. Will is proud though he doesn’t focus on it, he’s too busy trying to stand while he’s head is spinning wildly. 

“Damn it. Do you know how hard it is to find a good videographer these days?" Ollerman complains. 

“Don’t move Ollerman.” Comes Frankie's hard voice, from somewhere behind Will. 

But it’s too late. Ollerman already made his move. He’s got Will’s gun in his hand and his body as a shield. 

Frankie locks eyes with Will. He can see her fear and her worry. But he can also see the fire and hatred. He hopes Ollerman can see it too. 

“Not so fast pretty girl, back up, you don’t want me to get nervous and splatter your baby daddy’s brains all over the room now do you?” Ollerman snarls, then laughs a little when Will sees a look of pain at the mention of their lost baby cross Frankie’s face. 

“Or maybe you do, come to think of it.” Ollerman continues, pushing the gun a little firmer against Will’s temple. “Might be doing you a favour really.”

“How’s that?” Frankie demands, finger twitching on the trigger of her gun. 

Will can see Ollerman’s smile in the reflection of the mirror over the bed. “You told him all your dirty little shameful secrets Frankie, but I’m wondering if he’s told you his. If he confessed his sins the way you confessed yours. If he’s told you what he did that night in Israel, why it took him so long to get to you, why those men had time to hurt you the disgusting way they did.” 

Frankie’s eyebrows pull together in confusion. 

Will’s head is spinning. He has no idea what Ollerman is talking about. He did everything he could to get to Frankie that night in Israel. He did everything he could to keep her from harm. He did everything but drag her out of that club the second he realized she didn’t follow him like planned. 

“He left you there Frankie. He fed you to the wolves. Ezra wasn’t going to give you that drink until Will left the club. We knew that with him still there we wouldn’t have had a chance to dose you. Will would have been watching too closely, he would have seen you fall and got you to the doctor in time. But he left you didn’t he. He walked right out the door and left you. If he hadn’t you’d be picking out cribs right now.” 

Will watches as Frankie’s jaw clenches as she takes in Ollerman’s words. Her gun is trembling in her hands and she’s staring at him like she’s never seen him before. Like he’s a stranger to her and she doesn’t like strangers very much. 

“Give it up Ollerman she’s not buying your bullshit. She’s smarter than that.” Will hisses, praying he’s right and Frankie isn’t letting what Ollerman said get to her. 

Ollerman smirks. “But it’s true isn’t it Whiskey. You did leave her. I did get to her. And she did kill your baby because of it. All because you left her.” 

“I’m going to enjoy killing you.” Frankie whispers.

“Are you talking to me or him?” Ollerman questions. “Because if he’s told you what he was doing just hours after you cleaned up the blood of your little precious mini Whiskey, I can’t believe you haven’t done it already. Did you tell her Will? Did you tell her what you did?”

“That’s enough Ollerman.” Will yells. Eyes pleading with Frankie not to believe a word coming out of his mouth. 

“You didn’t tell her about how after you ran around the city looking for her you came back home and got so drunk you ended up in fucking your neighbour. Did you tell her about calling the girl Sass, bending her over and screwing her on the same couch I’m fairly certain you created that little life on?”

Will is furious. “That never happened.”

Ollerman ignores the denial. “Do you even remember Will? Do you remember the three day bender where you drank every last drop of alcohol in the house then ordered in more. How you kept fucking that neighbour again and again, every time harder and harder until she bruised and begged for mercy. Did you tell Frankie about her Will, or about any of the others?”

Frankie’s eyes fill with tears as she looks at Will. “You lied to me?”

Will is shaking his head, there’s no way she can believe it. “Sass no.”

“Don’t call me that.” Frankie’s voice is harsh and her eyes have gone cold. 

“Frankie’s he’s lying.” Will begs. 

“I’m not.” Ollerman defends. “I’ve got the footage. I can put it on the screen right now if you’d like. It really sets the mood, if you know what I mean.” 

“Francesca.” Will tries again to break through to Frankie.

“Alexa, play Whiskey on the Couch.” Ollerman announces and immediately the sounds of sex fill the room. Will’s voice rough and growly, and the moans of a woman who's clearly not Frankie, fills the air. But Frankie doesn’t look at the TV and neither does Will, he’s too busy watching the flurry of emotions fly across Frankie’s face. 

Ollerman forces Will’s face towards the TV with this gun, but Will keeps his eyes on Frankie. “I have more recordings if you’d prefer, a whole library of them. Did you know she let me watch while she broke you so I could laugh while you cried Whiskey it was marvellous. You know how I like to watch Frankie. And the things I’ve seen while you were gone. I didn’t think he had it in him, but you walking away brought out a side of him that even I didn’t know he had hidden. You should be glad I helped you make sure a baby never came into that home.”

“Frankie please he’s lying.” Will begs, tears flooding his eyes at the hatred he can see building in hers. 

Finger twitching on the trigger and ice hardening her eyes Frankie tilts her head, moves threateningly closer and glares at him. “He’s not though is he Will? You did leave me. You left me in that bar. You left me to get hurt. You were supposed to protect me and instead you left me alone.” She whispers in a flat and deadly voice.

She takes another step closer, eyes not wavering from his, not paying any attention to Ollerman anymore as she moves to point the gun directly at Will less than two feet away. 

“You lied to me about Nicky. She tried to tell me, but I was so sure you wouldn’t lie that I dismissed her. I left everything and everyone I loved to keep you safe. To keep you from getting hurt by what I’d done, but I guess I needn’t have worried you weren’t hurt at all were you. It was all for show. All so you could play the victim and get sympathy fucks and no one would judge you for it.”

“Frankie I didn’t. I wouldn’t. You can’t believe that I would ever do anything to hurt you. He’s messing with your head, you know I couldn’t have done any of it.” Will pleads. He can’t believe this is happening. He can’t believe Ollerman has twisted everything so much, has done so much damage that he’s going to lose Frankie when he just got her back. “Please Sass, please.”

“I said don’t call me that!” Frankie yells and leans closer. So close that Will can feel Ollerman pull back slightly at the anger in her voice. 

“I don’t think she likes you so much anymore Whiskey, look at her face. I don’t think she likes you at all.” Ollerman says in his ear.

Will can feel the tears falling and running down his neck. “Frankie.”

Finger pressing firmly on the trigger Frankie straightens her shoulders and steadies her gun. “You promised me Will.”

“I love you Francesca, please.”

“You promised.” 

***************************

Susan is just seconds away from reaching the doorway having turned around when the comms knocked out, a severely limping Jai close behind, when they hear the gunshot ring out and the wail that followed. 

Neither were prepared for what they were about to walk in on. 

There’s no way they could have been. 


	19. Chapter 19

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay folks, it's time to wrap this thing up. 
> 
> This wasn’t the story I set out to tell, like at all. And half of the notes and ideas and dialogue and flashbacks I had written, didn’t even make the cut. 
> 
> Not to mention it’s about 10 times longer than I intended, but I enjoyed writing it regardless and I hope you enjoyed reading it. 
> 
> But alas we have come to the end. I hope you enjoy the final ride. 
> 
> Nickell

_“I don’t think she likes you so much anymore Whiskey, look at her face. I don’t think she likes you at all.” Ollerman says in his ear._

_Will can feel the tears falling and running down his neck. “Frankie.”_

_Finger pressing firmly on the trigger Frankie straightens her shoulders and steadies her gun. “You promised me Will.”_

_“I love you Francesca, please.”_

_“You promised.”_

A million thoughts and memories play through Will’s head as he looks down the barrel of the gun the love of his life has pointed at his head. 

The first time he saw her in that red dress and was half in love without knowing her name. The reluctant trust in her eyes when he cut her open on Ray’s kitchen table. The shy smile she gave him when she told him she loved him that very first time. 

He remembers kissing her fingers while they ate gelato in Little Italy, and how her hand was shaking on a cold day in October when she took him to the small pub in Ireland where her parents had met. 

He remembers it all, the fights, the making up, the quiet moments full of love and laughter and the days of pure anguish while she was gone. 

It can’t end like this. This isn’t how it’s supposed to end. He can’t leave her in so much pain. She deserves a happy ending. He was supposed to give her a happy ending. 

Staring her straight in the eyes Will tries again. He’ll never stop trying. He won’t give up on her.

Opening his mouth he chokes on a sob. Swallowing hard he opens his mouth again. He needs to tell her it’s not true. He needs her to know even with the sounds and images playing on the screen behind her that it’s a lie. It never happened. He didn’t lie to her. He would never lie to her. 

“Frankie…” Will starts and is abruptly cut off by the woman before him.

“You promised.” She whispers, with tears in her eyes.

“Frankie I didn’t…”

Narrowing her eyes, Frankie almost imperceptibly kicks up one corner of her mouth, and speaks in a clear and calm voice, “My Eagle Scout doesn’t break his promises.”

Time slows down for Will. He watches as Frankie releases a breath and squeezes the trigger. He watches the kick back of the gun, the spark of the bullet being released from the chamber, and he feels a small puff of air as it rushes past his ear and lodges itself in Ollerman’s forehead. Dead centre. 

The next few seconds are a blur of activity and emotion. Will stumbles back as Ollerman’s body crumbles to the floor. He tries to catch himself, but Ollerman’s hand was wrapped around his vest so he’s pulled to the floor and he hears a small sickening crack of the still fragile bone in his left arm. 

Pain shoots through his body, and a wave of dizziness blackens his vision. He’s got tears on his face, blood dripping down his neck, and he’s certain his arm is broken again. But none of that matters right now. Only Frankie matters. 

“Will?” Frankie calls from what seems like miles away. “Will, can you hear me?”

Shaking his head slightly to clear away the blurriness, Will focuses his eyes on Frankie. She’s standing over him, gun still raised, but a soft concerned look in her eyes has replaced the hatred seen only seconds ago. 

“Frankie?” Will breathes out. He doesn’t know what just happened and he doesn’t care. Frankie’s looking at him like she loves him and that’s all he wants to focus on for the rest of forever. 

Smiling softly, Frankie’s eyes fill with tears. “Hey Whiskey.”

Blinking away the residual haze Will offers a tentative smile of his own and a small “hi” in response. 

The door bursting open cuts off all further conversation and has Frankie turning quickly, gun raised and body between Will and the entering figures.

Will watches as Susan and a limping Jai move into the room guns drawn and eyes searching. 

Frankie’s shoulders relax and her gun lowers when she sees who it is and she’s turning back to help Will stand before she speaks. “Ollerman’s dead. It’s over.”

Lowering her gun, Susan slowly moves to the girl still loudly sobbing and covering herself in the bed sheet and starts talking to her softly in Portuguese trying to calm her down. 

Jai moves to the body of the videographer and pokes at him with his toe, then moves his eyes to land on Ollerman’s corpse, before lifting them to Frankie.

Narrowing his eyes and tilting his head, he glares at her, “Are you crying?” 

“No” Frankie lies, as she steadies Will beside her. 

Looking exasperated, Jai slowly shakes his head in disgust that is completely voided by the smile dancing on his lips. “Warriors do not cry in the middle of missions Francesca.” 

Huffing out a soft laugh, Frankie nods, “Yes Jai.” But doesn’t stop the tears as she reaches for Will and buries her face in his neck and wraps her arms around his body.

Smiling at Jai, and getting a wink in response, Will threads his right hand in Frankie’s hair and kisses her temple, while doing his best to hide the fact that he can’t move his left arm without tremendous pain. 

He has so much he wants to say. So many lies that need to be addressed, but for right this minute he’s just going to hold her and say a prayer of thanks that she doesn’t seem to have believed a single word that Ollerman said. 

Moving quietly to the side so Jai can confirm Ollerman’s dead and search for weapons, Frankie still has her head buried in Will’s chest when Standish comes barrelling into the room a minute later. 

Stopping as soon as he crossed the threshold Standish eyes go wide as he searches the room trying to take everything in at once. Moving from the body on the floor, to Susan helping the girl into her dress, to Jai poking at Ollerman and Will and Frankie standing together in the corner he relaxes for just a moment before his eyes turn to the TV and widen even further. 

A look of outrage crosses his face and his arms start flailing like they do when he’s being dramatic. “I thought you were dead. I thought when the comms gave out, you were all in here lying in a pool of blood and I was going to have to come in here and avenge you all.”

“You don’t even have a gun.” Jai comments without looking up, too focused on the cell phone Ollerman had in his pocket. 

Standish ignores the jab and flails his arms even harder in the direction of the TV. “I was worried and planning your funerals in my head and you’re in here watching porn!”

Will had forgotten about that, the sounds still played through the speakers and the images flickered across the screen for all to see, but Will had tuned them out. And it appears that Susan and Jai never took notice. Turning to look at Frankie he sees that she’s looking at Standish, steadfastly refusing to look at the screen and the images it projects. 

Scoffing, Standish continues his tirade. “And it’s not even good porn. Amateur at best. The lighting is terrible, the camera is grainy and the sound quality is horrible. Whoever made this didn’t even sync the audio and video. Pitiful.” Standish shakes his head at the screen before turning to Will and frowning then whipping his head back to the screen. 

“Oh my God that’s your apartment! Is that you? Damn I’m never sitting on that couch again.” Standish wrinkles his nose at Will, seemingly not having noticed that the woman in the video quite clearly isn’t Frankie.

“Alexa, pause screen.” Will requests. The frame freezes, and he moves his right hand to cup Frankie’s face. 

Stepping in front of her so his back is to the screen he lifts her face to his so he can look her in the eye. “It’s not real Sass, it’s a lie. I don’t know how he did it, but it’s not true. None of that ever happened. I promise Sass, it isn’t real.”

Pulling her eyebrows together Frankie frowns at him. “I know that Will.”

Tears of relief fill Will’s eyes as he searches hers for any lingering doubt but comes up empty.

Sighing, she speaks softly so only he can hear. “I knew what he was doing. Trying to manipulate me, using our baby as a pawn. It worked last time so I guess he thought it would again. But, I know you did everything you could in Israel to keep me safe. I never once believed otherwise. Not once have I ever blamed you for any of it, Will.” 

“Francesca.” Will chokes and rests his forehead against hers, as the horrible memories of that night flash through his mind. 

Bringing her hands to his chest she smooths them over the vest meant to keep him safe. “I know he lied. About all of it. I know you slept at Jai’s the night I left, because you were sure I would turn up there. There are no cameras in the apartment, Jai and I got them all and Jai checks every week. The half full bottle of bourbon we drank the night before you went to Washington wasn’t touched until we had some before we saved those fish. And not for one minute would I ever believe that even in your most drunk state you would ever hurt a woman and leave marks on her body.”

Pulling her close with his right hand Will looks her in the eye and murmurs quietly “Never. There’s been no one but you Frankie, not since Prague I swear.” 

Glazing past him at the frozen image on the screen, Will watches as she methodically takes in every pixel before moving her eyes back to his. 

“There’s no Christmas Tree in the corner, that man’s hair is wrong, and he doesn’t have a birthmark on his ass like you do, the books are out of order and the bottle of wine you bought me isn’t sitting on the shelf.”

“What?” Will asks, turning to look at the screen again. She’s right. It’s close and might have fooled someone else, but not her. His Sass is all about the details. The video’s a fake. His voice over someone else’s body in an apartment designed to look like theirs. 

Turning back to her and moving his hand to brush a stray hair that escaped her ponytail off her face he begs for confirmation, “You believe me then. Even with everything he said and the video. You know it never happened.”

Lifting her hand to his cheek, she softly runs her thumb over his lips. “You promised me Whiskey. That’s all I need to know.” 

The last of Will’s fear leaves his body as he whispers “I love you, Sass.”

Leaning forward to rest her smiling lips to his, Frankie whispers her response “To Pluto Whiskey.”

  
  


***********************

  
  


Twelve hours later finds Will sitting on a New York City hospital bed, beside a very grumpy Frankie. 

Both he and Jai had their injuries checked by the medics Ray sent to the Villa. It was strongly suggested to both that they go immediately to the hospital for stitches. Jai for his leg and Will for his head. They both declined over the very loud and cuss filled objections of Frankie. 

She railed and called them idiots while the medics fixed them up as best they could and gave them each a shot to numb the pain, then they boarded a plane for home. 

Resting his hand on Frankie’s leg Will tries once more to soothe her anger. “I’m fine Frankie.”

“You don’t know that Will. You’re not supposed to fly with a head injury, or a newly broken bone for that matter. And don’t try to tell me that putting on the brace was good enough. Your arm was so swollen by the time we landed that they had to cut the brace off when we got here.”

Will sighs, but he can’t argue with her. He should have listened to her and gone to the hospital in Portugal. But all he could focus on was getting home. Home so they could start their new Ollerman free life together without having to look over their shoulders at every turn. Home so he could finally put his grandmother’s ring on her finger. He wanted to get back to the home they shared. Together. 

Leaning over he softly presses a kiss to Frankie’s shoulder. “You’re right, I’m sorry. My head is killing me, the drugs they gave me to numb my arm so they could drain it are wearing off and my whole body hurts. I should have listened to you.”

Frankie’s eyes soften from annoyance to concern at his words and she brushes her fingers over his cheek before linking them though his right hand. “What can I do to help?”

“Just stay with me.” Will whispers, bringing their joined hands to his lips and pressing a kiss to her knuckles.

“Always” She whispers back with a smile. 

“So he is your forever man after all.” A voice interrupts, and pulls both their eyes to the door where a very smug looking Nurse Maggie leans against the frame. 

Huffing out a laugh Frankie nods and looks back at Will. “Yeah he is.”

Will has no idea what they’re talking about, but when Frankie’s looking at him the way she is now, he doesn’t really care about much else. 

Pushing herself into the room Maggie glares at Will. “I told you when you left that I didn’t want to see you back again.”

Will smiles. “Yeah well I couldn’t resist the loving pull of Nurse Hilda and I just had to come back to see her. This was the only excuse I could think of.”

Frankie rolls her eyes at Maggie and smothers a smile. He’s told her all about Nurse Hilda and her tattling ways, and knows that Frankie would love five minutes alone in a room with the woman that was so mean and rough with him when he was at her mercy.

Pointing her finger at Will, Maggie smiles. “I hope you have a better story than that ready to go because Dr. Peers is making her way down the hall as we speak and she was not impressed when your name popped up on a patient chart.”

Before Will can respond a familiar accented voice fills the room. 

“I just put you back together Agent Chase. Why am I looking at an x-ray of a broken arm and a CT of a concussion?” 

“Workplace injury?” Will says, then feels the bed shake softly as Frankie hides a chuckle behind the hand not holding Will’s. 

Dr. Peers raises an eyebrow and shakes her head. “You’re not supposed to be at work yet.”

Sighing Will hangs his head. “You got me. I wasn’t at work, I was at home working on a project.”

“What kind of project?” Dr. Peers questions, in a way that tells Will she doesn’t believe a word he’s saying. 

Smirking at Frankie, Will rubs his thumb over the back of her hand and turns back to the doctor. “Saving the fish.”

**********************

“I can’t believe you told her about saving the fish.” Frankie mutters around a smile as they enter the apartment they left hastily three days prior. 

Offering her a drugged up smile Will does his best to defend himself. “Come on Sass, it’s not like they knew that it meant.”

Rolling her eyes because she knows that both doctor and nurse knew exactly what he meant, Frankie puts her snow globe keychain on the counter and turns back to him. 

He’s standing at his desk searching for that sharpie again just like he told her was going to. He’s got a new bright white, plaster cast stretching from wrist to elbow only this time the doctor insisted he have a sling to go along with it when he’s not sleeping. 

Will is certain that Dr. Peers is just punishing him for coming back so soon and the wink she threw Frankie when Will dropped his head in a pout makes Frankie believe it too. But she won’t tell him that, she likes it when he pouts. Gives her an excuse to kiss it away. 

“Found it!” Will cries triumphantly, then wobbles a little. They gave him some more meds to numb the pain and reduce the swelling in his arm. He didn’t want to take them, but Frankie asked him to. Pouts she likes, him in pain she does not. 

Pointing at the couch Frankie smiles. “Great job Sherlock, now sit down before you fall down.”

“So sassy.” Will mutters, but follows her directions and pulls her down with him when she gets close enough. 

Laughing softly, Frankie leans up and kisses his cheek. She absolutely loves this man. Loves him with her whole soul and she plans on making sure he feels that, every minute of every day for the rest of his life. 

“Property of Francesca.” Will reads, as he writes the words in bold letters. They're slightly sloppy due to the drugs in his system, but they’re there for the world to see. He belongs to her no question. 

Maybe it’s time the world knew she belonged to him as well. 

Taking a deep breath Frankie softly takes the marker out of his hand, pulls his casted arm into her lap and adds to his words. 

“Laine.” she whispers quietly. 

“What?” Will questions, then looks down at his cast. 

“Laine. It’s my middle name. 

Will blinks at her, then runs his fingers over the name. 

Watching as he traces each letter like he’s committing it to memory, Frankie softly tells him a story. “My dad was a big Beatles fan, loved all their music, owned all their albums and saw them in concert more than a dozen times.”

Will smiles at her gently and lifts her hand to his lips to kiss her palm. 

Smiling shyly back Frankie continues. “My mum not so much, wasn’t a huge music fan, she preferred quiet activities like reading and puzzles. But she loved him so she danced with him when he asked and never said a word about listening to Strawberry Fields and Yellow Submarine for hours every time they took a road trip. Something I complained about very loudly as soon as I was able to vocalize my objections.”

Will smirks. “You complain? I can’t even imagine, it's so out of character for you.” 

“You wanna hear my story or not?” Frankie asks with narrowed eyes.

“Yes, sorry continue.” Will says, but the look on his face tells her he’s not sorry at all. 

“Anyway.” Frankie draws out with a teasing glare. “When I was born my dad wanted to name me Penny Lane, after the song. But mum hated the name Penelope and didn’t want me to get made fun of in school. So they settled on Francesca Laine instead. Mum insistent on adding the i in Laine. Said it was classier.” Frankie then wrinkles her nose in disgust and mumbles. “As if the name Francesca wasn’t pretentious enough.”

“Hey, I happen to love the name Francesca. It’s sassy and classy and absolutely perfect for you.”

Frankie just rolls her yes and softly calls him a dork. 

Not taking any offence, Will smiles widely. “Francesca Laine, I love it.”

Feeling a confusing mix of brave and shy Frankie looks down at his cast and fingers the letters the same way he just just moments ago. 

“I figured if we’re going to get married, you should probably know my name.” She whispers, behind the hair falling in her face. 

She sees him lift his head swiftly to look at her, but refuses to meet his gaze. “I haven’t asked you yet.” He murmurs softly. 

“But you will, won’t you Whiskey?” Frankie tries to keep the desperation out of her voice when she asks. But she needs to know, she needs to know that he’s going to be hers forever. That he still wants to give her his ring. She needs to hear him say it again. 

“Francesca.” Will whispers, and cups her cheek so she has no choice but to look at him. 

Blinking away the tears that threaten to fill her eyes Frankie curls her fingers around his arm. “I know we said slow Will. Hell it's been less than a month, and I’ve only been back living here for a few weeks and this is faster than turtles in peanut butter should move.” 

Frankie can hear herself babbling and feels dumb for it, but the love she sees in Will’s eyes lets her continue her thought with a small shrug and a soft question. “But even turtles get there eventually right?”

Tears are filling Will’s eyes and he lifts his good hand to brush the hair behind her ear before whispering his reply. “Yeah Sass they do. And we’ll get there too. Fast or slow we’ll get there.”

“Promise me.” Frankie demands gently, feeling like her life depends on it. 

He doesn’t hesitate. Just tilts forward and kisses her softly. “I promise.”

***************

It’s lack of warmth that pulls Will from sleep in the middle of the night two days after Ollerman’s body is returned to the states for identification and cremation. 

At first he’s not sure why he’s cold. He’s got plenty of blankets and the apartment is warm, and yet still he’s freezing. Reaching for Frankie to warm him further, his hand finds nothing but air and empty space in the place her body should be. 

A fews weeks ago waking up and finding her gone would have sent Will into a panic, but not anymore. Smiling a little at how far they’ve come in trusting each other since she’s been back, Will slips out of bed and down in the hall, searching for his heart and finding it curled up in a ball under a blanket on the couch. 

She’s sitting in the dark of the living room, lights of the city painting her in shadows. Her head is bowed and she’s slightly turned away from him so he takes a moment to study her and marvel at his luck. She’s the most beautiful woman he’s ever seen and he still can’t believe she’s chosen him. 

“You’re supposed to be asleep Whiskey. You have a big day tomorrow.” She startles him by saying softly without looking up. 

He does have a big day tomorrow. He has his debrief on the Ollerman mission. Frankie had hers today and has been quiet since she’s been home. 

Moving closer Will smiles. “Got cold without my booty buddy.”

Frankie wipes at her face and huffs out a small laugh, but still doesn’t look at him. “You’ve been hanging out with Standish too much.”

“Yeah he really is a bad influence. You should really limit my time with him.” Will teases and moves to sit beside her. 

Shifting a little closer to him, but still hiding her face away and hands under the blanket, Frankie silently agrees with a small nod. 

Slowly reaching around her Will tugs softly at the blanket and pulls it away so he can see what he already knows she’s trying to hide. 

Confirming his suspicions he pulls her tightly against him and rocks her gently as he kisses her temple and tells her he loves her when he feels her hot tears hit his neck. 

She lets him hold her for a moment before pulling back slightly and moving the blanket until it’s wrapped around both of them with the small blue box she was hiding now fully visible and sitting on her lap. 

Wiping at her cheeks, Frankie’s voice is rough and tight with emotion when she speaks. “I would have been entering my third trimester this week.” 

Will can’t think of what to say. He’s not even sure if he could say anything as he feels a tidal wave of emotion flood over him and choke him with sadness. So instead he pulls her even closer, threads his hand through her hair and presses a series of kisses to her tear stained cheeks.

Taking a shaky breath Will reaches out and takes the box from her hands. Opening it up, he pulls out the onesie and softly runs the fabric through his fingers. 

Clearing his throat he softly asks her the questions he’s been trying to find a way to ask for weeks. “Will you tell me about it, Sass? When you bought it, how you found it, why you chose this way to tell me?”

Lifting her hand to trace the yellow letters Frankie softly does just that. 

She tells him about taking six pregnancy tests and trying to think of a special way to share the results. 

She tells him about seeing it in the window while she walked to her apartment the day after she found out. 

She tells him about the old man thinking it was a gift and her making the decision right there in the store that it was. 

She tells him about how excited she was to tell him she won at best gift and best blood work results. 

And she tells him about how badly she wanted to just blurt it out over the phone, but that she wanted to see his face when he found out even more. 

She tells him everything, except the one question that Will still seeks an answer too. 

“Why FBI though Sass. You’re always making fun of us.”

Her snorting out a laugh is the last thing he expected at that moment, but it’s exactly what happens. “Babies are soft Will. They’re soft and they don’t know anything, just like the FBI.”

Will smiles at her explanation. “Is that right?”

Franke smiles back. “It’s exactly right.” 

Her smile fades a little when she looks back at the onesie. “When I saw it, I couldn’t imagine anything more perfect than you holding our baby in your matching sweater. Nothing more beautiful than a mini Whiskey, soft and strong, full of kindness and compassion. A smaller version of you that I could love and watch grow into a man who would change the world because he had the best dad in the world to teach him how.”

Lifting his hand to her cheek he slowly brings her eyes to his. “Best mum too. We might have lost this baby Frankie, but that doesn’t mean we don’t have the chance to have another one. A chance to have those pictures of matching outfits sitting on the mantel. To kiss skinned knees, read bedtime stories and watch ballet recitals. We’re going to have our family gorgeous and it’s going to be wonderful.”

Running his thumb along her cheek he watches her eyes as a sliver of hope shines through the sadness and light tries to overtake the dark. The pain doesn’t disappear, he knows it won’t ever fully go away. They’ll both always carry this loss with them. But he hopes the hurt will ease a little more each day, as they move forward and build their life together. 

“Three.” Frankie says softly. 

Will’s forehead creases in confusion. “Three what?” 

“Three babies. I want three babies.” 

Will smiles widely and leans forward to kiss the smile from her lips. “Three it is Francesca Laine.”

Will feels her smile widen against his lips and her arms wrap around his neck pulling him closer. She’s shifting into his lap when a thought suddenly strikes him.

“Wait.” Will insists and moves her off his lap so he can stand up. “I got to open my gift, but you never got to open yours.”

“Seriously you want me to open it now?”

“Well yeah, if you open it we can finally take down the Christmas Tree. I mean it is May 2nd it’s getting a little silly to still have it up.”

“You’re just going to make me help you decorate it again in October.”

“That’s because Christmas is so much better than Halloween.” Will reasons, the pleads, “Please Frankie, open your gift. I want you to see if you like it.” 

Smirking at him she caves. “Fine, but for the recond mine was still better no matter what’s in that box.”

“No question.” Will confirms with a nod.

Returning to sit beside her, Will flips on the table lamp and lights the small corner of the couch and hands her the red box. 

Shooting him a grin she swiftly rips the paper and crumples it up. She knows he hates that. He’s a very methodical gift opener. Never ripping the paper and always neatly folding it after. Just one more thing that he secretly likes that she loves to tease him about. 

Opening the box Frankie pulls out a stack of legal papers and frowns at them in confusion. “I don’t understand. What is this Will?”

“Do you remember right before Thanksgiving, I got sick on that mission to Peru and you came over to look after me?”

Frankie glares at him. “You mean when you acted like a huge baby and whined until I came over and made you soup and banana bread, then you offered your thanks by sharing your cold with me? Yeah I remember.”

Will remembers how grumpy she was when she woke up the morning after he started feeling better all stuffed up and cursing at him, and he smiles. “You sent me out for gelato for your sore throat, remember?”

Frankie glares harder. “I remember you taking hours to get it, while I suffered in silence.” 

“In silence.” Will confirms, though they both know she was anything but. Frankie does not like being sick. Like at all. 

“I wanted to surprise you. To make sure you knew how much I loved and appreciated you. So I took a cab and went all the way out to Little Italy so I could get you grapefruit gelato from Frankie’s.”

Frankie smiles at him and he has to stop himself from kissing her in the middle of his story. It just might be the hardest thing he’s ever done.

“Anyway, when I got there I noticed a For Sale sign in the window. I asked about it and ended up talking to Little Frankie, Big Frankie’s son.”

His Frankie smirks at the originality of the nicknames, just like she does every time they go there. 

Reaching for her hand Will rubs his thumb over her knuckles. “Turns out Big Frankie has to give up the business. He's sick and needed to retire, but Little Frankie couldn't afford to keep the place open with his other job and the medical bills piling up. So he was being forced to sell.”

Sadness fills Frankie’s face and Will rushes forward hoping to take away that sadness as quickly as he can. “I couldn’t let that happen Sass. I didn’t want you to lose that connection to your mum and the place that holds such sweet memories for you, for us. So I made him an offer.”

Frankie gapes at him. “You bought it?”

“No, just bought into it. Well actually I just paid for it, you’re the one that actually owns it.”

Frankie’s eyes widen and she looks down at the papers again. It’s all right there in front of her as she flips through the pages. She owns part of Frankie’s Pizza and Gelato. It’s hers.

“Will…” Her voice trails off as she runs her fingers over words that declare her owner of the gelato portion of the restaurant. 

“Do you like it, Francesca?” Will asks nervously, as tears spill out of her eyes and land on the papers in her lap. “You don’t have to do anything. Little Frankie runs everything, it’s more of a silent partner kinda deal. And there’s a money manager and lawyer that make sure everything is above board and they send you statements and make deposits into a business account I set up for you each month. I have them right here if you want to look.” Will starts to get up, but stops when she reaches for his arm. 

Lifting her eyes to his, she simply looks at him in a way he can’t interpret, and Will feels his stomach drop to his toes. 

“You can sell it if you don’t want it. You can sell it and I’ll take care of it all. You won’t have to handle any of it Frankie I swear. Just sign a paper and I’ll make it all go away.” 

Still looking at him in the same way, Frankie lifts her fingers to his mouth to make him stop talking. “You bought me a pizzeria because you knew it reminded me of my mother and it would make me sad if it closed.”

“Just the gelato stand, Little Frankie gets to keep the pizza.” Will blurts out before he can stop himself. 

Frankie smiles at him, her eyes fill with tears again and Will can see this time it’s because she’s happy. “I love it. It’s absolutely perfect.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah.” Frankie confirms, then leans forward wraps her arms around him and kisses him until his toes curl and his whole body tingles. 

They don’t get much sleep after that, and Will is exhausted before he’s even halfway done filling out his paperwork and answering hundreds of questions. But he’s meeting Frankie for some grapefruit gelato as soon the day is over and the smile on her face when she sees her name in neon lights hanging above the counter is going to be totally worth it. 

  
  


*****************

  
  


Two days later Frankie feels the sun shining on her face begging her to wake up and start her day. Frankie is not having any of it. She’s tired. Will kept her up late and she doesn’t have to be anywhere until the afternoon, so she buries her face into the pillows and pulls the blankets over her head. 

“Francesca.”

Frankie grumbles and buries herself deeper into the blankets. “Forget it Whiskey, I’m not getting up. Go find someone else to play with.”

She can hear him laugh and feels the bed shake as he settles himself on the top of the covers beside her. 

Frankie might be cranky and still half asleep, but she’s not stupid and she knows a good thing when she sees one, so she immediately scoots closer, wraps her arm around his waist and lifts her head into his lap. 

She’s rewarded when his hand almost instantly starts weaving through her hair, scratching her scalp and twisting the ends around his finger. 

“Why are you dressed?” Frankie sighs, as Will’s hand slips under the covers and slides down her naked back. She was in bed reading in his old FBI t-shirt when he got home from his “boys night” last night. But, somewhere around midnight he talked her out of it and left her with only her bullet necklace and a smile. 

She can hear Will’s grin in his response. “I ran out to get us breakfast. Didn’t figure the ladies at the bakery on the corner would appreciate me showing up with no pants.” 

Frankie smiles. “I think you figured wrong Whiskey. I’ve seen the way they look at you. Probably would have gotten us some free coffee.”

Will trails his fingers down her back making her shiver. “And an arrest record for public indecency I’m sure.”

“Free coffee Whiskey.” She snarks, and is once again rewarded swiftly. This time with a gentle pat on her ass and a mumbled “sassy,” and her smile grows bigger. 

Things are quiet for a moment, the only movement in the room comes from Will’s hand running rhythmically through her hair while the casted fingers of his other hand dance patterns on the arm wrapped around his middle. 

Frankie can feel herself starting to drift off when Will’s soft voice once again fills the room. 

“It’s the 4th today. May 4th.”

Frankie sighs softly and rolls on her back so she can look up at him. It’s clear he’s got something on his mind and her dreams of going back to sleep fall away. 

Lifting her fingers to his face, she wipes at the small serious pull of his lips and smiles at him. “Feeling like the force is with you today Whiskey?”

Smirking at her, he pushes the hair of her face and drags a finger over her cheek. “I’m going to tell Standish you made a Star Wars joke. He’s going to love it and want to talk about it for hours.”

Glaring at him she rolls away, pulls the covers back over her head and grumbles a very insincere “I hate you.”

Laughing and rolling her back to him, Will scoots down on the bed so he’s lying beside her and pulls her close, asking quietly, “Do you know what May 4th is?”

“The day before May 5th.” Frankie sasses, still slightly worried that Will might actually tell Standish and she’ll have to listen to him ramble for hours about how the force works and why StormTroopers are so misunderstood. 

Smiling at her, Will gently shakes his head. “May 4th marks exactly one year since I refused to kiss you, and you instantly fell in love with me.”

Frankie feels the air leave her lungs as she marvels at his words. One year. It seems like so long ago, but only yesterday at the same time. 

Recovering quickly she tries to sass him, knowing he’ll see right through it. “Instantly in love? More like instantly annoyed.”

Will’s smile grows bigger and he leans forward to whisper in her ear the same way he did that day. “You can’t fool me pretty girl. I knew I had you the minute you shivered.”

“It was cold.” Frankie defends, pulling herself closer to him and silently cursing the blankets in the way. 

“Liar.” Will hums against her lips. 

Smiling as he kisses her Frankie remembers everything about that day. The feel of Will’s hand on her hip, the sounds of his voice rough in her ear, and the pounding of her heart in her chest at the endless possibilities that laid before them. She’s sure she’s never made a better decision in her life, than the one to let him woo her. 

Pulling back much too soon for her liking, Will pops up on his elbow and watches her. “I had it all planned, you know.” He whispers after a minute. 

“The wooing?” Frankie questions softly. 

“The wooing, the dating, the proposal, the wedding, the honeymoon, the kids, the house with the dog, sitting on a rocking chair watching our grandchildren play while you held my hand. I had it all planned Sass. Right in that moment standing on that overlook in Prague, I saw our whole life together. I saw how magical it was going to be.”

Frankie swallows hard, lifts her hand to rest on his chest and smiles, “Pretty confident I’d agree to your plan weren’t you.”

Will shakes his head softly. “Not at all. I wanted you so bad Francesca, I wanted you to say yes so bad. But I was terrified you wouldn’t, and I would lose you.”

“But I did say yes.” Frankie whispers. 

“You did and you made me the happiest man on the planet.” Running his hand through her hair Will looks at her a little shy, a little scared and a whole lot of nervous. “I want to make you happy Frankie, I want to make you as happy as you make me.”

“You do Whiskey. You make me so happy.” 

Leaning forward he kisses her before sitting up and pulling her with him. But he doesn’t stop at sitting, He pulls her right out of bed and slips her discarded t-shirt back over her head and leads her down the hall to the kitchen and the breakfast he set up for them at the bar. 

“I wanted it to be perfect you know. I planned it so it would be.” Will insists, eyes pleading with her to believe him. “I was going to take you to the rooftop patio where we had dinner on our first official date. Then to Frankie’s where you ate gelato with your mum. And finally on a walk in the park, where I would hold your hand and lead you to the fountain where your dad taught you how to make wishes with pennies. I was going to make it beautiful, so you’d always remember it. I had it planned, right down to the last minute. Everything was set for tonight.”

Frankie’s heart stops in her chest. She thinks she knows where this is going and the fact that he’s telling her what the plan _was_ and not what it _is_ , makes her scared that he’s changed his mind.

Tears fill her eyes and she’s opening her mouth to apologize for whatever it was that she did to make him change his mind, and plead with him to change it back, when he cuts her off. 

“But I woke up this morning and you were pressed up against me, doing that little snorting snore thing you do and hogging the blankets, and I knew I couldn’t wait any longer. I couldn’t wait the extra few hours until tonight. I couldn’t let one more day go by without asking.”

Tears are falling from her eyes in earnest now. She knows her answer, she’s known since that day in Prague if she’s honest with herself. She knew then that they’d end up here eventually. 

But then everything went to shit and she lost him for a while and she was sure she’d never get to hear him ask the question he’s about to ask. 

“I know it’s not perfect Francesca. I know it’s bagels in our apartment and not a candle light dinner overlooking the city. I’m not in a tux and you’re not in a dress, and with the concussion I can’t get down on one knee without falling over quite yet. But, I can’t wait even one more minute without knowing. So I’m hoping you’ll overlook all that and agree anyway when I ask.”

Sniffling Frankie wipes at her cheek and fights the urge to throw herself into his arms. “Ask me what Whiskey?”

Lifting one hand to wipe away a tear she missed, Will pulls a ring from his pocket and holds it between them. It’s the most beautiful ring she’s ever seen. A simple band of white gold with small diamonds threaded into it, holds tight to a circle shaped large but not to large diamond that’s hugged on each side by small heart-shaped emeralds the colour of the hills of Ireland. 

“This was my grandmother’s ring. It was her grandmother’s before that. This is my family ring. This isn’t the ring I gave to Gigi, or the ring I imagined one day I’d give Sarah Graham or Jessica McBride. This ring felt wrong for them, something about it just wasn’t right, and I never knew why.” 

Lifting her left hand to his lips, he softly kisses the knuckle of her fourth finger. 

“But, now I do. It’s because it was meant to be on your finger Francesca. With you it feels right. With you I know my family ring is safe, that I’m safe. And I hope you feel safe enough to agree to wear it forever.”

“I do.” Frankie whispers passed the lump in her throat.

Will smirks softly. “Don’t skip ahead in the script Sass, you have to say yes first.”

A laugh wells in Frankie’s chest and escapes her lips before she can stop it. Not that she would have. “Then hurry up and ask already Whiskey.”

“So bossy.” Will murmurs and kisses her knuckles again, when she shoots him a teary smile.

“I love you more than anything in this world Sass. All the way to Pluto and back a million times over and I want the world to know we belong to each other forever. Francesca Laine, will you marry me?”

Not able to hold herself back any longer Frankie throws her arms around his neck and whispers her answers against his lips. 

“Yes Whiskey.”

  
  


*******************

_Six years later._

“Clara Laine Chase you get back here right now!” Frankie calls after her four year old wild child, who just ran by with Albert - their long suffering fat cat - firmly clutched to her chest. 

“Yes mummy?” Clara answers when she turns around. Emerald eyes a little too wide and the smile on her face a little too innocent to make Frankie believe her child was up to anything good.

“What are you doing with Albert?” Frankie asks with suspicion. 

“I was just going to give him a bath. His paws got dirty in the mud. See.” Clara holds out the cat’s paws as evidence. The cat’s perfectly clean paws. 

“Put Albert down sweetheart, he doesn’t need a bath.” Frankie reasons and reaches to take the cat from her daughter. 

Clara frowns, but releases the cat. “If Albert doesn’t have to take a bath why do I have to?” 

“Because you got syrup in your hair at breakfast and rolled around in the dirt at school.” Will says, as he comes around the corner with a sleepy looking toddler holding a small pink bear with a yellow bow, firmly in his arms. 

Clara purses her lips but doesn't deny the accusation. Even at four she knows the grass stains on her dress are a dead give away of her recess activities. But that doesn’t mean she’s ready to give up her cause. 

Shifting her eyes from her mum to her dad, Clara gives them a crooked smile. “Does Daniel Jai need to have a bath?” 

“He already had one while you and daddy were digging for worms.” Frankie answers, shooting a glare at Will, who tries to look innocent in response. 

Clara shakes her head sadly at her mother. “Not me mummy. Daddy was digging for worms. I was picking the tomatoes like you asked. But a worm must have been running away from daddy cause it climbed right into my hand!”

Will gapes at his daughter’s attempt to throw him under the bus and Frankie does her best not to smile. 

“Go pick out your jammies sweetheart. I’ll be there in a minute and we’ll get you cleaned up for bed.” 

Clara looks like she’s going to argue before she pauses and a serene look comes over her face. “Yes mum.” And with a smile she’s gone.

Frankie narrows her eyes at her daughters back and then turns to Will. “She’s been spending too much time with Jai.”

Will laughs and rubs his hand over their son’s back. “She’s you Sass. From the top of her head to the tips of her toes that girl is you. Wild, brilliant and full of spunk.”

“I guess that makes his sleepy boy you huh.” Frankie murmurs as she takes the toddler reaching for her into her arms and feels him immediately nuzzle his face into her neck. “Sweet, calm and full of snuggles.”

“Well, he loves his mum more than anything, so I’m going to agree with you on that comparison.” Will smiles and tilts forward to kiss her smile. 

“Mummy, I can’t find the ninja jammies Uncle Jai got me, I can’t sleep without my ninja jammies!” Clara yells from her room and Frankie sees a stuffed llama in a t-shirt come flying out of the door, followed swiftly by the grass strained dress her daughter was wearing moments ago.

Frankie sighs and shakes her head. “Please tell me I’m not that dramatic.”

“No comment.” Will mutters and smiles against her temple as he brings his hand to rest beneath his son on Frankie’s swiftly expanding stomach. “You look tired Sass, why don’t you go put mini me to bed and I’ll wrangle mini you into the tub and read her a bedtime story.”

Sighing in exhausted relief Frankie nods. “Don’t let her talk you into more than two stories, Will. I mean it. She might be mostly me, but she definitely got your negotiation skills.”

Will chuckles and with a kiss to both her and the baby he disappears down the hall to wrangle the daughter Frankie can’t possibly imagine being any more perfect into the tub.

“Come on big boy lets go to bed.” She whispers and carries her little boy, who is bound to be a charmer with his daddy’s big green eyes and resting smile to his room. 

It’s over an hour before she feels Will slip into their bed and wrap his arms around her. 

“How many stories did you read?” Frankie mumbles, rolling over so she can tuck herself into his body.

“Two.” Will responds just a little too quickly.

“Will.”

Will sighs knowing he’s been busted. “Fine four, but they were short.”

“Sucker.” Frankie laughs and scoots in a little tighter. 

“How are you feeling?” Will whispers against her temple, hand resting on her belly. 

“Tired, fat, miserable.” Frankie answers. 

“Beautiful, gorgeous, radiant.” Will counters making her smile. 

“Liar.”

Shaking his head Will rejects her accusation. “Never, you’re the prettiest girl I’ve ever seen. Especially when you’re pregnant. And we make the most beautiful babies. I’m so glad you wanted three, Sass.”

“Yes, three.” Frankie agrees. Before turning a glare on him, completely negated by the joy in her eyes. “But thanks to your super sperm, three has turned into four and I’ll be bigger than a whale before long.”

“The most beautiful whale I’ve ever seen.”

Frankie rolls her eyes in the darkness. “Always the charmer.”

Chucking tiredly against her skin Will kisses her forehead softly. “Sleep pretty girl. I promised a trip to get gelato tomorrow and if you play your cards right, I’ll buy you a double scoop.”

“Will you hold my hand so I don’t get scared crossing the street?”

“Always.” Will promises and weaves his fingers through hers. 

“I love you Whiskey.”

“To Pluto Sass. All the way to Pluto and back.”

  
  
  


The End. 


End file.
